No Place Like Home
by Polkahotness
Summary: When Mr. Simmons' house burns down in a tragic accident, it's Arnold who comes to save the day in inviting him and his 'roommate' into the Sunset Arms Boarding House. But what he discovers is even more intriguing than the accident itself and shows Arnold just who his teacher is in ways he never could have imagined. Mr. SimmonsxPeter, Arnold.
1. Chapter 1

_**So this story is not mine at all, and i just want to say that I am honored to have been chosen to help write such an amazing story with such a truly great plotline that is deep, interesting, and what i believe a very canon situation. plus it's angst and we all know how much i love angst.**_

 _ **So i'd like to thank the ever amazing SpectrumBunny AKA Spec AKA gay-arnold on tumblr. You are such a great person and you have come up with a truly amazing story that i am so happy to be a part of creating with you and showing the fandom. I take no credit in the plot- i am simply the messenger haha.**_

* * *

It was a typical Monday. I'd woken myself up, had breakfast with the boarders who were rowdy as usual, gotten myself ready and then waited for Gerald's mom to come and pick me up to take me to school. We'd switched to this carpool idea about a year ago after Gerald's mom had switched shifts at the store she worked at and she had to start around the same time school opened. It worked well; I usually got into the car as Timberly sat up front and Gerald and I shared the back seat. Timberly talked incessantly about whatever she'd had for breakfast or a cartoon she watched while Gerald usually got annoyed and made various comments to me about how annoying she was, though it didn't bother me that much. After our short distance to school, we'd exit the car and head inside of PS118; Gerald I talking to each other about our weekend as our fellow classmates made their way into Mr. Simmons' classroom with us- a herd of students filling into the room as the bell rang and we awaited class to begin.

But today, on this a typical Monday, was not as typical as I had hoped.

"Good morning students," Principal Wartz greeted us as we filtered into the room and Gerald and I eyed each other in confusion. It wasn't every day the Principal was the one to greet us and I glanced around the room before looking to Gerald.

"Where's Mr. Simmons?" I asked quietly as I took my seat, and Gerald shrugged his shoulders while taking the seat next to me.

"Beats me, Arnold. Maybe the guys running late?" He offered and I shook my head.

"Mr. Simmons is never late, Gerald," I mumbled as the bell rang and the rest of our class took their seats.

"Students," Principal Wartz greeted us again while standing in front of the classroom. "Mr. Simmons will be gone due to some personal matters today, so I'd like to introduce you to your substitute teacher for the day, Ms. Callee," he said, a woman entering the room with a smile, though a tired one at that.

 _Personal matters,_ I thought while shaking my head. "He isn't running late, Gerald," I whispered over to him and he shrugged.

"So?"

"Yeah," Helga chimed in from behind me. "So what, football-head? Granola Boy is probably just stuck at home sick or something."

I shook my head, "Didn't you hear Principal Wartz? He said it was personal, not that he was sick."

"Yeah, and?" She retorted back at me before crossing her arms over her chest and frowning. "Maybe the guys got family over or something, WE don't know, criminy." She said with a roll of her eyes and I sighed while giving her a deadpan look.

"I just hope he's okay, don't you?"

Helga shrugged her shoulders. "I'm sure he's just PEACHY, Hair Boy."

But I wasn't sure. Mr. Simmons had always been a great teacher to us and I found that him not being there caused for a very weird day. I was so used to his cheerful disposition all day that, while Ms. Callee was a fine teacher, she just wasn't living up to the expectations Mr. Simmons left behind while he was gone.

And I couldn't stop hoping he was okay.

 _Personal matters,_ I kept repeating to myself and frowning as I did so. _What exactly were personal matters?_

The day went by slowly as Ms. Callee droned on about fractions and other topics that we'd been studying under Mr. Simmons. Nobody seemed to question what was happening with Mr. Simmons and it bothered me to know that nobody in our class was worried whether or not he was okay. It wasn't like him to miss class, even if he _was_ sick or had company over.

I brought it up at recess and was once again shot down by my fellow classmates.

"Maybe he's off at the spa taking a day off," Rhonda concluded while checking her nail bed. "If _I_ were a teacher, I'd certainly play hooky for a day at the spa."

I sighed and shook my head. "Rhonda, he's not at the spa I'm almost sure about it."

"Maybe he's got tickets to go and see that new show downtown at the theater!" Sheena squeaked out as Eugene nodded his head.

"I've heard it has some really great numbers in it. He'll have to show us the playbill when he gets back!" Eugene added and I frowned while looking off into the sky.

"Guys, don't you think it's out of character for Simmons to just up and skip school for something as silly as a play or the...spa? He just wouldn't do that to us," I said while most of the kids rolled their eyes and Helga stood up from the picnic table and crossed her arms.

"What does it matter to you ANYway, Arnoldo?" She asked with a raise of her brow. "We've got a substitute teacher for a day which means no homework and THAT'S something to be celebrated."

"Maybe," I said while biting my lip. "But no homework or not, I just hope he's okay."

"I'm sure he's fine, man," Gerald reassured me, "let's just focus on recess, alright? I'm sure Simmons will be back tomorrow."

But I wasn't so sure. There was something about the term 'personal matters' that set me off into panic mode because it didn't mean he was off doing something else or sick. It meant something was going on in his life that prevented him from focusing on teaching and that just wasn't something Simmons did. In all our time with him, he hadn't ONCE called in sick or missed a day of class for _any_ reason. Something in my gut told me there was something going on and I just couldn't let it go, no matter what the day brought.

* * *

"So that Ms. Callee," Gerald said on the way home from school as we sat on the bus, "she was a real piece of work."

I shrugged my shoulders. "I guess."

"Arnold, are you still hung up on Mr. Simmons? The guys a big boy, he can take care of himself," Gerald stated flatly and I sighed while looking out the window as we passed the town on our way home.

"I know, Gerald, it's just... I can't help but feel like something is wrong."

"And so what if it is? What are YOU gonna do about it?" He questioned and I frowned as I continued staring out the window.

"I don't know," I mumbled as the Sunset Arms boarding house came into view from the bus and I stood up to get ready to exit the bus. "I just thought-"

"Relax, man," he said with a smile. "Stop worrying about everyone and their mother, okay? I'm sure Simmons is just fine and he'll be back tomorrow."

"Sure Gerald," I said as the bus came to a stop in front of my house. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya."

I sighed as the bus pulled away and I made my way up the stoop to open the door of the boarding house and enter it with an exhausted feeling washing over me.

"Grandma, Grandpa, I'm home!" I called out as I heard a commotion taking place from the living room.

Curiously, I wandered there where all the boarders were huddled around the TV watching the news- an occurrence that didn't happen often unless something serious had happened. "What's going on?" I asked from where I stood behind the couch and Grandpa turned around to look at me from where he sat.

"Hey there Shortman, how was school?"

I shrugged my shoulders while watching the news reporter talk about an incident from downtown. "Fine. What's going on, Grandpa?"

"There was fire," Mr. Hyuhn said from where he sat in a foldout chair next to Oskar and Ernie. "Downtown."

"A fire?" I repeated as they nodded their heads; their faces glued to the television and I sighed before turning around to head up to my room. Halfway up the steps, Grandpa called for me, my eyes widening at his words.

"Hey Shortman! You better come down here!" He called out, "That teacher of yours is on the news!"

Immediately turning around, I rushed down the steps to rejoin everyone in the room where Mr. Simmons' face was plastered on the television screen, tears streaming down his tired expression.

"Turn it up," I requested and they did as I instructed.

" _I'm here now with local school teacher Mr. Robert Simmons and his roommate Peter Perez who were involved in the chaos that ensued down here early this morning. Robert, can you tell us about what happened?"_

My eyes widened as he leaned in towards the mic and sniffled before speaking. _"We were still in bed when it all happened. Probably around 3am or so when we smelled... smelled smoke and- and – and,"_ he erupted into more tears and my facial expression dropped to see him in such a manner. His roommate reached over to pull him into a hug and then said for him, _"We had to evacuate the house immediately. It wasn't until we were on the street with our neighbors that we saw just how bad the fire actually was."_

"Wow, he looks pretty hung up about this," Ernie commented and I tore myself away from the television to shoot him a serious look.

"They just lost their house, Ernie," I said sympathetically. "I'm sure they're devastated."

" _Investigators have not yet been able to determine just what caused this terrible fire as of yet, but our sources tell us the damages are severe and could take up to a month to fix. We at channel 8 send our sincerest thoughts to those affected in this time of crisis. From Downtown Hillwood, this is Rebecca Frost. Back to you, Bob."_

I stared at the television as the news faded out and into another piece and Grandpa turned to look at me with concern.

"You alright there, Arnold?" He asked and I shook my head in disbelief.

"I can't believe Mr. Simmons' house was in that fire," I muttered while continuing to shake my head. "I knew something bad had happened, I just knew it."

"Take it he wasn't at school or something?" Ernie asked while hopping off of his chair.

"No, Principal Wartz told us that he had some personal matters and had to miss class today," I said still in a trance.

"Well yeah, I'd say that fire seemed pretty personal," Ernie said while heading back towards his room and shutting the door.

"He must just be a wreck," I commented and Oskar took a bite of his sandwich before replying to me while chewing loudly.

"He was crying like a big baby," he said and Suzie smacked his arm lightly from where she sat next to him.

"Couldn't you be more sympathetic, Oskar? He just lost his house." She said and he shrugged his shoulders.

"At least it wasn't ours, heh heh heh," he laughed and I frowned in his direction.

"But it could have been. How would you feel if that happened to us? Now he has nowhere to live and we have all these empty rooms here..." my voice trailed off as an idea hit me. "That's it! We have all these rooms here! Grandma, Grandpa," I said as they perked their heads up at the sound of their names, "Do you think we could offer Mr. Simmons a room here until he can get back on his feet and the repairs are done?"

"What like a sleepover? With your teacher? I don't know, Arnold..."

"Not a sleepover Grandpa," I said flatly before continuing, "he could really use our help and since we have extra rooms right now, why don't we offer him one until he can move back into his own house?"

He stroked his chin in thought at my proposal. "Hmm... I suppose we could do that, for your teacher and all. He's a good one, isn't he? A little weird, but a good teacher?"

"Grandpa, he was your teacher too. He helped you pass 4th grade, remember?" I said and he thought about this for a moment before laughing.

"Oh! Oh ho, that's right, I plum forgot. All these brain cells dying on me, Shortman, I tell ya."

I sighed, but a smile growing on my face. "Your brain cells aren't dying off, Grandpa, you remember him. He's a great teacher."

"Well, if you really want to Shortman, I suppose we could let him stay here for a month or so until they fix up his place. That is if he wants to." he said and I grinned from where I stood.

"Thanks Grandpa. I'll... I'll have to figure out where he's staying and ask him if," I stopped mid-sentence and furrowed my brows. "I have to figure out where he's staying!" I announced before running off to my room and closing the door behind me.

* * *

I didn't know where to start. I couldn't even imagine the pain that Mr. Simmons and his roommate were feeling right now and the worst part was I didn't even know how to reach out to him. Where did someone go when they lost everything?

"I guess I'd go home," I said to myself as I stared out my bedroom window and lay on my back. "Home... where is home for Mr. Simmons?"

Then it hit me. The Thanksgiving dinner Helga and I were privy to being a part of. All of his family must have been there, including his roommate if I remembered correctly. But the whole thing was foggy and I could hardly remember any of the names of the people that sat around the table. If only I could remember the darn play. If only I could remember the names of those people...

"But maybe _I_ don't have to remember," I said to myself while sitting up from my bed. "Maybe Helga still remembers!" I exclaimed before rushing to my phone where it sat on my couch-side table.

I dialed Helga's number, one I knew by heart for a reason I couldn't quite figure out but I didn't have the time to worry about which numbers I had memorized and which ones I didn't. After a few rings, Helga was the one to pick up.

"Hello," she said dully and I cleared my throat nervously.

"Hi, Helga, it's Arnold."

"A-Arnold?" She said almost off guard before adjusting the phone in her hands and spitting back into the receiver, "What could YOU possibly want?"

"Have you seen the news today?" I asked and she scoffed.

"Yeah right. All anyone watches around here are soap operas and the wheel. Why?" She asked and I reached up to rub at the back of my neck.

"I was right about something being wrong with Mr. Simmons," I said sadly, "His house caught on fire along with a few others on his street downtown."

"O-oh," she muttered more to herself than me. "That's, that's a bummer."

"I know," I said, "So I thought that I could invite him to stay at the boarding house for a while. Until things get figured out with his house and all."

"Arnold that's, that's so sweet of you," she cooed into the phone and I raised a brow before she cleared her throat and then said angrily, "I mean, what ELSE did I expect coming from a goody-two-shoes football-headed weirdo like you. Pssh."

"Thanks, Helga," I grumbled before trying to refocus my attention for the reason why I called. "Anyway, I called because I was trying to figure out where Mr. Simmons would be and figured he might be staying with his mom or somebody, but I couldn't remember her name."

Helga laughed into the phone. "What? And you think _I_ know his mom's name? Criminy, Arnold, what do you think I am? Some kind of information retainer?"

"No, no," I said backing up and trying to explain myself. "That play we were in for Thanksgiving, you remember that, don't you?"

"Yeah..."

"And we found each other after leaving our own Thanksgivings and then went to Mr. Simmons' house to celebrate with him," I reminded her and she sighed while growing more annoyed with me than interested in what I was going to say.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, and it BLOWED even worse than our OWN Thanksgivings, what about it?" She asked and I sighed while trying to compose myself.

"The names of his family, they were all the same in the play, remember?"

She paused for a moment on her line before agreeing with me. "Y-yeah, yeah they were, weren't they?"

"Now, who did YOU play in the play version?" I asked and she immediately responded with heavy emphasis on the name.

" _Joy_. What a horrible name." She responded and I ignored her comment.

"Okay, that was his friend. And his roommate was there right? Peter? I remember him from the news."

Helga seemed to be following me and continued. "Right, and Stink-O was Uncle Chuck or whatever and you were Simmons and Rhonda, God, who was Rhonda?"

"That was the mom, that's the name I'm looking for." I responded desperately and after a minute of thinking, Helga exclaimed the answer I'd been in search of.

"Pearl! Her name was Pearl!" She said and I nodded my head quickly while writing down 'Pearl Simmons' on a scrap of paper sitting next to the phone.

"Thank you, Helga, really. I couldn't have remembered without your help."

"Eh," she said limply, "don't sweat it, Arnold. Maybe I AM a retainer for useless information."

"Not useless, Helga," I reminded her. "You'll be helping me help Mr. Simmons in a really serious time for him. Thank you, so much."

"Yeah, yeah, you're welcome." She said before slamming the receiver down and disconnecting our call.

I had it. I had a name. Quickly, I ran to my desk where I knew I had a phone book sitting around somewhere. Finding it in haste, I rushed to flip through the pages and find the S section and search for this 'Pearl Simmons.'

"Simmons, Simmons, Simmons, Pearl! Pearl Simmons!" I exclaimed once I found the name and carried the book back to where my phone still sat beside my couch. "Well, here goes nothing," I said before dialing the number and waiting patiently for someone to pick up.

"Hello?" An older woman's voice answered and I cleared my throat nervously.

"Hi, is this Pearl Simmons?" I asked and the voice turned to annoyed rather than intrigued by who was calling for her.

"Who's asking?" She retorted and I swallowed hard.

"This is, uh, this is Arnold Shortman, I'm a student of Mr. Simmons and I just saw the news and was wondering-"

"Robert!" The voice yelled and I pulled the receiver away from my ear as she continued. "Robert! You've got a phone call!"

I pulled the phone back to my ear as the phone shuffled hands and a sad voice answered, one that I hardly recognized as my happy-go-lucky teacher. "Hello?"

"Mr. Simmons? It's Arnold."

His voice perked up slightly at the sound of my name. "A-Arnold? Arnold, how did you, how did you get this number?"

"It's a long story," I said, "but that's not what I'm calling about."

"What...what can I help you with, Arnold? Is everything going alright at school? I'm sorry I missed today it's just-"

I shook my head though he couldn't see. "You don't have to explain, Mr. Simmons, I saw you on the news."

"Oh," he said softly in a melancholy tone. "I'm sorry you had to see me like that."

"Don't apologize, you had every right to react how you did. You went through something... traumatic." I encouraged and he merely sighed and agreed.

"Yes," he paused for a moment before refocusing and asking me again, "If I may ask again though, why did you call? Is something wrong?"

I smiled, bursting with my excitement to offer Simmons a place to stay. "Well, after seeing you on the news, I was wondering if you had a place to stay in the meantime while your house is being fixed up. We have plenty of rooms in the boarding house and my grandparents said you could stay here until your house is ready."

"They, they did?" He asked, surprised by such an offer.

"Yeah. We'd love to have you. I know it's a weird situation and all, but-" Mr. Simmons cut me off mid-sentence.

"Honestly Arnold, that's such a kind offer for you to make and I really appreciate it but I wouldn't want to put you out. My uh, my roommate and I are staying at my mother's for the time being and as much as we'd like to be...anywhere else but here...I'd hate to make you feel like you had to put us up."

I pursed my lips together and shook my head. "You wouldn't be putting anybody out, Mr. Simmons. You and your roommate are welcome to have your own room with your own space and can eat with us and have no worries here. Think of it as a hotel. And wouldn't that be better than staying with your mom?"

He seemed to think about this for a second before responding. "It really would be nice to stay somewhere with a room to ourselves," he said to himself as if weighing the option. "When, when were you thinking we could come over? If anything, just to check it out. We don't really have much to bring with..." His voice trailed off and I closed my eyes realizing that most of their things were probably destroyed in the fire.

I felt so bad for him.

"Don't worry about bringing anything, Mr. Simmons. We're all a family here and I'm sure we have everything you need for however long this takes."

He sniffled from his end of the line and I could tell he was beginning to tear up. "Arnold, that's so, so thoughtful of you to think of me, of us, after all we've been through. I'd be honored to stay with you and just so thankful."

"Don't worry about it, Mr. Simmons. You deserve to have a space to call your own even if it isn't in your own house at the moment. Come over any time you like, we usually have dinner around 5 and I'm sure the boarders would love to get to know you."

"And you're sure this is alright with everyone? With your family?" He asked again and I nodded my head with a smile wide across my face.

"Absolutely positive. We are a boarding house after all."

"Well," he said with a small twinge of happiness in his voice, "I'll talk to Peter and arrange to come over sometime tomorrow before you all have dinner if that's okay. Just so we can go back to the house and see what we can salvage and bring with."

"Of course," I said, coming to the end of our conversation but wanting to add in one final thing. "And Mr. Simmons?"

"Yes, Arnold?"

I smiled. "I'm really glad you'll be staying with us."

He inhaled deeply as if fighting back tears and there was a sad smile in his voice. "Thank you so much, Arnold. You're such a special kid. I can't tell you how much we appreciate this."

"It's no problem. I'll see you tomorrow, Mr. Simmons," I said.

"Yes, see you then, Arnold. You have a good night." He said before gently hanging up the phone and leaving me to smile to myself as I sat on my couch.

Sure, it wasn't ideal to be living with your teacher, but what else were you to do in a situation where someone needed help and you had it to offer? I knew I had to help Mr. Simmons in any way I could because he'd do the exact same thing for any of us in his class.

It might be weird, but it was the least I could do. And I was happy to do it.

* * *

 _ **Well, what do you all think so far? I hope you are as intrigued and interested as i was the first time i heard this idea. it is going to get SO GOOD and i promise you that you won't regret a single second reading this fic. please PLEASE review and let us know what you think, we would appreciate the feedback so much.**_

 _ **much love!**_

 _ **-Polka & Spec**_


	2. Chapter 2

"Man, I can't believe you're gonna be living with our TEACHER," Gerald exclaimed as we worked on making the bed of the empty room that was to be where Mr. Simmons and his roommate would be staying.

"I just feel bad that there's only one bed. I offered them two rooms but Mr. Simmons said it was fine and that he didn't want to take up more space than necessary." I said while fluffing the pillow into its case.

"Mm mm MM, he is too good a guy. He's going through all KINDS of crazy and he's worried about taking up too much room in a BOARDING house." Gerald said and I nodded my head with a sad expression.

"I know, it's so sad. I'm just glad there was something I could do to help," I said while exiting the room with Gerald and closing the door behind me.

"When is he and his friend coming over anyway?" Gerald asked and I shrugged my shoulders.

"Sometime before five, or maybe after? I guess I'm not really sure. I didn't want to pressure him into coming over if he's not ready yet. And besides," I said as we made our way to the living room. "Maybe it's better if they show up after dinner. You know how the boarders can be..." I said while trailing off and Gerald smirking beside me as we took a seat on the couch.

"A little overwhelming?" He offered and I nodded my head.

"You've seen them first-hand. They aren't... the most sensitive people in the world," I said while picking up the remote and turning the television on.

"THAT's an understatement," Gerald said with a sly smile and I rolled my eyes.

"I just want him to be comfortable," I mumbled while looking down at my lap. "He's already suffered enough."

"I know, man, but you've already offered him and his friend your home. There's not much else you can do at this point, ya know?"

I nodded my head and sighed while changing the channel to the ongoing investigation of the fires. "Maybe I should talk to the boarders," I decided, "Maybe if I talked to them they could control themselves for at least a little bit until they get adjusted here."

"Yeah, man. It's worth a shot," he said with a shrug, his eyes blankly glued on the television. "But do you really think they'd listen to you?"

I thought about this and sighed. "Probably not. But like you said, it's worth a shot, right?"

* * *

The dinner bell rang, and the boarders each exited from their rooms to make their way to the dinner table where the smell of fresh food was lacing the air. Grandma had made another casserole, hopefully one that was edible this time, and a bunch of fresh vegetables from the garden. I left my room and slowly made my way downstairs to where everyone was gathering around the kitchen.

"Hey guys?" I said as I parted through the crowd and made my way to my usual spot at the table, the others taking theirs. "Can I ask you all a favor?"

"I don't have any money, kid," Ernie said and Mr. Hyunh shot him a look.

"Give him chance to talk, Ernie," he scolded. "You're rude. Rude!"

"Oh, I'M rude, huh? I was just covering my bases, Hyunh." he retorted and I sighed while watching as chaos began to ensue like it usually did.

"How you know he was asking for money?" Hyunh asked with a cross of his arms.

"Well we ALL know he wasn't going to ask Kokoshka now, was he?" He countered back and Oskar frowned from where he sat across the table.

"Hey! I have money!" he fought back and the table laughed loudly at his absurd comment.

"Hey, look at me," Ernie said making wild gestures in the air, "I'M Oskar, I have MONEY, hah hah hah, what a load of crap!"

Suzie laughed and then gave Oskar a sympathetic look after her giggle. "I'm sorry, Oskar, but you never have any money."

He frowned and took a scoop from the casserole and plopped it onto his plate. "I do too," he fought back, "Suzie how could you say that about me?"

"Because it's true?" She said while taking the casserole from him and scooping some onto her plate as well. "Oskar, since I've known you you've never had any money."

"Yeah, and you're always taking ours too!" Ernie piped in while pumping his fork-clad fist in the air. "Don't you remember last week when you cheated at poker and took me for all I was worth?"

"Or when you took my piggy bank!" Mr. Hyunh added. "Not nice, Oskar!"

He offered a nervous grin and chuckled. "What piggy bank? Heh heh heh heh..."

"Guys!" I exclaimed over their sudden roar of fighting that took place after Oskar laughed. "Can we just be serious for a moment? Just give me two minutes, I have something to say."

They all dropped their utensils and sat quietly, staring at me. A rare moment of silence between the group and I was startled that they even listened to me.

"What is it, colonel?" Grandma asked and I sighed while staring down at my empty plate; the casserole not yet making its round to me.

"We're going to have some guests stay at the boarding house for a while," I started, my words shaky as they came out of my mouth. "And they're really... they're going to be sensitive."

"Is it those people from the news?" Suzie asked while taking a bite of her food. "Your teacher and his friend?"

I nodded my head. "Yes, it is. They've been through a lot recently and I'd really like to welcome them to the boarding house with open arms and, well, normalcy. I think they could really use that right now."

"Normalcy?" Ernie repeated and scoffed. "What part of this house has EVER been normal? I mean look at this food," he said while picking some of it up with his fork and Grandpa shot him a glare.

"You watch yourself, Ernie," he said with narrowed eyes and I frowned.

"Can't you guys even try? Just try for one night to be normal?" I pleaded and then sighed to myself and quieted my tone. "Look, these people just lost their home. They have next to nothing left. Their emotional states are probably off the charts right now. Can we please not act like animals at dinner tonight?" They all looked around at each other suspiciously as if trying to decide which one of them would ruin it all the most.

Because, even as optimistic as I was, I knew somebody would ruin it.

Grandpa cleared his throat and smiled in my direction. "Sure, Shortman. I think we can handle toning it down for just one night, don't you?" He asked the boarders and they all nodded their heads slowly as if still processing the idea of it.

"Alright," I said slowly as the casserole finally made its way to me. "Thank you, really. I just think they'll need some time to... adjust. And let's be honest, all of us are a lot to adjust to."

"Right, ALL of us," Ernie muttered to himself before taking a big bite of food, the doorbell ringing and causing everyone to freeze around the dinner table.

"Well?" Ernie broke the silence while pointing his fork in the direction of the door and chewing on his food. "You gonna get that or not? They are YOUR guests."

I swallowed the bite of food I'd taken and ignored Ernie's comment entirely. "Okay guys," I said while scooting my chair out to stand up, "That's them. Please, PLEASE be on your best behavior, okay? This is my teacher, remember, and I really don't want to scare them off."

"Aye aye, captain!" Grandma called out as I left the kitchen and made my way to the front door, settling myself with a deep breath before opening it to reveal my teacher and his roommate who looked practically unrecognizable.

"Mr. Simmons, Peter," I greeted them though Peter merely stayed stoic and Mr. Simmons offered a heartbroken smile.

"Hi Arnold," he said, curled into himself as Peter steadied him with a hand on the small of his back. He looked horrible and I could tell that even 'normal' for our boarding house family wasn't going to help anything.

They'd already been through too much.

"Please," I said while opening the door further, "Come in. We're just getting started on dinner. Have you two eaten yet?" I asked and they shook their heads.

"We just left the-the house," Mr. Simmons stuttered out and Peter rubbed at his back for a moment. "I'm sorry, we couldn't find anything to bring with us that was salvageable. Just... just..." he gestured to his clothing with a sigh. "This."

"It's alright, Mr. Simmons. We understand completely. Come on in, I'll introduce you to everyone."

Slowly, they entered the house, their eyes wandering around their new environment as they carefully followed me into the kitchen.

The chaos that normally ensued during the dinner hour, came to a screeching halt as the two figures darkened the doorway to the dining room. The faces of both men held numb, listless expressions, though Mr. Simmons' eyes were noticeably more red than his partner's and his cheeks were pale. They both wore dull, beat up hoodies with patches in colors that didn't match and ratty old jeans that had been mistakenly stained with bleach. 'Much more suitable for house or yard work than the dinner table,' one of them surely thought to themselves. The energy in the room shifted from familiar and comfortable to something vaguely threatening. Peter's right hand rested protectively in the small of Mr. Simmons' back; the left cradling his shoulder. Without a word, he led Mr. Simmons to the nearest empty chair and helped him into it by pulling the chair out for him and gesturing for him to take a seat.

"Suzie, why don't you ever pull the chair out for me?" Oskar whined quietly and Suzie merely rolled her eyes.

"Oh Oskar..." she said quietly before I spoke up to address the entirety of the boarding house.

"Well everyone," I said awkwardly as one could hear a pin drop in the silence that surrounded us, "This is my teacher, Mr. Simmons-"

"You can call me Robert," he said softly and I nodded my head before swallowing hard and gesturing to his roommate who was taking the seat next to him.

"And this is his roommate, Peter." I said before taking my own seat and slowly sliding the chair into the table.

The boarders all looked at one another with concern before staring at me and waiting to introduce them. "Oh, right," I said to myself while shaking my head in embarrassment before clearing my throat and pointing to each one of the boarders where they sat around the table. "This is my Grandma Gertie, my Grandpa Phil, Ernie Potts, Oskar and Suzie Kokoshka, and Mr. Hyunh there at the end."

Peter and Mr. Simmons nodded their heads at each person, greeting them silently as Grandma slid in to give them each a plate and some cups of water and milk. "Do help yourself," she said in a surprisingly normal tone. "There's plenty to go around."

"Yeah if Kokoska doesn't eat it all first," Ernie said and I shot him a glare from across the table.

"Could you pass the casserole, Mr. Hyunh?" I asked while offering my hands to take it from him and pass it down to Mr. Simmons and Peter. They looked hungry but most of all exhausted. The passed two days had taken a tole on them, that was evidently clear. Their faces were lost in the new world around them and I couldn't help but feel sorry that this is where they'd ended up.

"What kid of casserole is this if I may ask?" Mr. Simmons questioned while scooping a spoonful onto his plate.

"Tater-tot and beef casserole with a few special ingredients," Grandma answered with a smile and Mr. Simmons stopped putting food on his plate and sighed.

"I'm so sorry," he said while looking down at his lap and Peter merely offered him a nod and switched his empty plate with Mr. Simmons'.

"Sorry for what?" I asked and he shook his head in embarrassment.

"I'm a, well, I try to stay away from meat products and fish," he said in near shame and Peter patted his back while passing him the bowl of vegetables.

"That's nothing to be sorry about," I said as the boarders nodded quietly amongst themselves. "Everyone has different eating habits. Its just something we'll have to get used to, right, Grandma?"

"Of course, Arnold," She said with a wink before taking her seat again and taking a bite from off her plate.

"So, uh, Peter was it?" Ernie asked while chewing his food and then swallowing and pointing his fork in Peter's direction. "What is it you do for a living, eh?"

Peter scooped up some of the casserole on his plate and said before putting it in his mouth, "I sell beepers."

"Well that sounds interesting," Suzie commented. "Do you know much about them?" She asked and Peter shook his head while focusing down on his food.

"Nope. I' just sell 'em." He responded quickly and I pursed my lips while trying to figure out just what it is Mr. Simmons saw in him to want to be roommates. They seemed so different from each other.

But who was I to judge? They'd been through a lot and maybe that's just how he was right now. Maybe the fire had really changed them in ways that were more evident in Mr. Simmons and less in his friend? I had to try and be sensitive to the issue, I had to try and make my home feel like theirs. I had to try, it's all I could do.

"So what's YOUR deal, Robert, right? You're a teacher, huh? Man, you got your work cut out for you." Ernie said next and I fought the urge to dive my face into my hand.

Mr. Simmons took a breath and shakily said, "...Oh, I wouldn't quite say that. I love my job. All of my students are very special to me." His words were earnest but the tone behind them was devastating. Mr. Simmons was clearly struggling with all that had happened and in the worst ways possible. His friend, however, seemed to be handling the whole thing pretty well. He was a strong guy, someone that maybe Mr. Simmons clicked with because of his brawny exterior and stoic nature. He seemed to keep him grounded in a way that Mr. Simmons couldn't do himself. It was as if Peter was the only thing keeping him from completely losing his mind.

It was nice to see a friendship like that. They must be very close.

The sound of snorts filtered out from under the table as Abner entered the room in search for lost crumbs of food- he was always our little vacuum cleaner, but my eyes opened wide when he flitted across Mr. Simmons' feet.

"Oh!" He exclaimed while jumping slightly from the table. "What was, what was that?"

"It's just Abner," I replied while lifting the tablecloth to look at him from where he sat under the table. "Abner..." I said as he hopped up on Mr. Simmons leg and looked up at him.

Mr. Simmons lifted the tablecloth to see Abner's brown eyes staring up at him and a small smile flitted over his face. "Oh hello there, friend," he said and I anxiously snapped my fingers.

"Abner, don't jump on people, that's bad!"

"It's alright, Arnold," he said while awkwardly reaching down to pat on the top of Abner's head. "He seems very sweet."

"So the two of you," Grandpa asked with a raised brow while interrupting the conversation about Abner, "You're roommates?"

Mr. Simmons dropped the tablecloth giving Abner the signal that he wasn't interesting anymore, and him and Peter shared a look before Mr. Simmons nodded his head. "Yes, we have been for years."

"That must be a...special kind of friendship you two have." He commented and Mr. Simmons blushed as Peter eyed him.

"Very special. He's...he's my best friend. We've been through a lot together," he stopped for a moment as if remembering what had happened and then swallowed hard. "Especially as of lately."

"We're so sorry to hear about your house, aren't we Oskar?" Suzie egged him on with a nudge under the table and he stopped eating and shot straight up.

"Yeah, yeah, very sorry," he said unnaturally. "How did it burn down?"

"Oskar!" Suzie scolded, but Mr. Simmons held a hand up and shook his head.

"It's alright, we too are wondering just how it happened. But so far the investigators are still looking into it." He shrugged his shoulders. "I'm sure it was all just a simple mistake."

"Crazy one, crazy mistake," Mr. Hyunh said with a shake of his head.

Grandma looked around the room before settling her eyes on our guests. "How is everything tasting?" She asked and Mr. Simmons simply stared at his plate which he hadn't touched while Peter answered for the both of them.

"It's great, thank you for your hospitality," he said. "We really appreciate it."

"I could help with the dishes if you'd like," Mr. Simmons chimed in, but Grandpa shook his head.

"Not tonight you won't. I think it's time Arnold and I here show you your room. Whattya say, Shortman?" He suggested and I nodded my head, anxious to get this first dinner over and done with.

And I was sure they felt the same way.

They rose from the table, each nodding towards the rest of the boarders and then followed Grandpa and me down the hallway to the first door on the right, right next to the bathroom.

"So this is your room," Grandpa introduced while handing Peter the key and opening the door. "Arnold and his little friend Gerald just cleaned it up this afternoon so it should be pretty tidy for you two."

"Thank you, from the bottom of my heart," Mr. Simmons said as his eyes shone with preparing tears. "I can't tell you how much your kindness means to us in this trying time."

"Don't sweat it," Grandpa said. "You've always been a great teacher to our boy Arnold, here, heck, to me even!"

"Yeah, Mr. Simmons. It's the least we could do."

"Well we appreciate it very much," Peter said as they entered the room. "It certainly beats the alternative, doesn't it, Robert?"

He nodded his head sadly, his eyes half-lidded and ready for bed. I couldn't imagine they'd gotten much sleep since the whole ordeal. Hopefully the bed and couch would be comfortable enough for the both of them. I wondered who would sleep where.

"If you need anything at all," Grandpa said as we stood in the doorway of the room, "Pookie and I are just down the hall and Arnold is upstairs. We're happy to help you two in any way we can."

"And we're sorry about the other boarders," I blurted out, my mouth feeling like they deserved an apology for all that was the awkwardness at dinner. "They really are good people, they just take...some getting used to."

"I'm not worried, Arnold," Mr. Simmons said with a half smile. "They all seem like some very special people. You all are to have us here in your home."

With that, we left them alone to get settled in whatever way possible. The boarders were curious though, constantly stopping at the closed door to listen in at the soft sobs emitting from the room. I was sure it was Mr. Simmons, completely distraught by all that had happened. I just hoped their friendship would give him some peace in knowing he wasn't alone in all of this. His friend had lost his home too.

And in some ways, so had all of us.

* * *

I knocked on the door, bag in hand and waited until Peter greeted me. "Hello, Arnold. Isn't it late?" he asked and I nodded my head while reaching up to rub at the back of my neck.

"I guess, yeah, but I uh, I just wanted to uh," what was it with this guy that made me so nervous? "I just wanted to drop off some stuff for you two."

"Let me get Robert," he said while turning around to find Mr. Simmons lying on the bed.

"No, it's alright-" I tried, but soon it was Mr. Simmons looking down at me from the doorway, a surprised look on his face.

"Arnold? Shouldn't you be in bed? We have school tomorrow..." his voice trailed off as if knowing he couldn't take being away from school any longer.

"I know, I just wanted to drop off some things for you," I said while handing him the plastic bag full of toiletries.

"Oh Arnold, you didn't have to do that," he said while opening up the bag to see what was inside. There were various kinds of shampoos, conditioners, body wash, toothbrushes and toothpaste, a few disposable razors, some body sprays and deodorant; practically everything Grandpa, Grandma and I could scrounge up on such short notice. It wasn't much, but I hoped it was enough to bring them some comfort.

"I know it isn't much," I said while looking down at my feet, "and we weren't sure what brands you two liked so we just settled on Old Spice, Colgate and Head 'n Shoulders. If that's alright."

Mr. Simmons looked up to me with watery eyes and smiled. "Thank you. That's very sweet of you." Peter turned his head from where he was now lying on the bed and glanced at me in the doorway with a straight face before turning over to the opposite side.

"The room treating you okay?" I asked and Mr. Simmons nodded.

"It's wonderful, thank you." He offered a sad chuckle. "I feel like I can't stop thanking you for all you're doing for us."

I raised my hand and shook my head. "There's no need to thank us, Mr. Simmons. We just wanted to do our part."

"Well, Arnold," he said while setting a shaky hand on my shoulder, "I think you're doing more than enough. And we're very grateful."

"Glad to help, Mr. Simmons," I said with a smile. "Goodnight," I said before turning around and making my way up the stairs to leave Peter and Mr. Simmons be for the night.

It had been a long day, and even longer for them I'm sure. I couldn't imagine losing my home only to crash at someone else's and feel so out of place. I just hoped that they could feel more comfortable as time went on while their home was being fixed.

It would be a long few weeks. But helping my teacher and his roommate? That was truly priceless.

* * *

 _ **Once again, guys, please PLEASE let us know what you think of this story, there's a lot of work that went into this and i'm really hoping you're enjoying it. Please leave a review and lemme know what you think!**_

 _ **And thanks again, Spec, for the great idea!**_

 _ **-Polka & Spec**_


	3. Chapter 3

It was nice outside. The sun was out and the sky was open without a cloud in sight. I'd called Gerald that morning and asked if we could walk to school; the day so perfect that we couldn't pass it up.

That, and I _had_ to talk to him.

It'd been at least three weeks since Mr. Simmons and his roommate had moved in. And while life had adjusted as it usually does, I had to admit, living with the two of them had it's challenges.

"It's __weird__ Gerald. He's a great guy and all and, dare I say that I like living with him, but I feel like I have to raise my hand at the dinner table every time I wanna say something." I told him as we walked along and Gerald laughed.

"I can't even IMAGINE it, man. Living with our teacher in your own house. Mm mm MM, that is some weird stuff." he mused and I shrugged my shoulders.

"I mean, it isn't _that_ weird," I backtracked as we continued down the sidewalk. "It's just... different is all."

"Well what do you mean?" He asked and I took a moment to think about it.

What _was_ so weird about Mr. Simmons and his friend living with us? They'd learned to fit in rather well with all the boarders and I was even willing to admit that they'd become part of the family in a way.

But there was something about it all that made it feel off- like there was something I was missing and just couldn't figure out. I felt like I was out of the loop on some big secret, but I was somehow unable to discover what that hidden secret was. I voiced my concern to Gerald and he shrugged it off.

"Everybody has secrets, man," he said with a lack of concern, "What's so important about learning his?"

It was a good question. I didn't know what _was_ so important about figuring out the mystery behind Peter and Mr. Simmons. I supposed it wasn't any of my business, but now that they were part of my life, I felt like it somehow _was_ my business and I was ready to figure out what it was that they were keeping from me.

I was old enough. I was already 10 years old and I felt much more mature than most of my classmates. So what could be so weird that it had to be hidden from me?

"I guess I don't know," I answered Gerald's question finally, "I just feel like if they are part of the family, shouldn't I be treated as part of that family too?"

"But you ARE the family, Arnold," Gerald said and I sighed.

"I just don't feel like it. I feel like everyone is hiding something from me but I can't decipher what that is. It's like I'm just some kid to all of them."

"But you ARE just some kid, man," he said with a shrug of his shoulders. "What's the problem with that?"

 _What's the problem with that,_ his words repeated in my head and I tried to think back and figure out just what the issue was with everything.

" _How's the homework coming, Arnold?" Mr. Simmons asked and I shrugged while sitting at the living room table trying to figure out the math problem in front of me._

" _Fine I guess," I said with a shrug while scribbling out the wrong answer on my paper. "How are the dishes coming?" I asked back and Mr. Simmons smiled a warm smile._

" _Just fine. I've already got most of them done from tonight."_

 _I looked up from my book and smiled back at him. "I don't know what we'll do without you when you're gone. You've done so much to help out around the house I don't think my grandparents will ever recover."_

 _He chuckled and wiped his hands on the apron he was wearing- one Grandma had lent him just for the occasion. "I'm sure you were all doing just fine before we came here."_

 _I shut my book on my assignment and shrugged. "I mean we weren't doing bad, just...different. And we've never had as good of food as Peter cooks. I can see why you two are such good roommates."_

Which I really could see because they seemed to match each other perfectly in a way I couldn't explain. They were the ying to each other's yang. I was jealous of that, jealous that they had a friendship even Gerald and I didn't share. I wished that I had someone who understood me as completely as they seemed to understand each other. Even on the nights when I overheard their conversations in their room, I could see why they got along so well together.

" _I just can't believe this is happening to us," Mr. Simmons said through the closed door and I perched my ear closer to the door to hear just what it was they were talking about._

" _I know, Robert. But things happen. We're just lucky we have somewhere to stay besides at your mother's house," Peter said soothingly and Mr. Simmons sniffled._

" _You're right, Peter," he said, "I've been looking at this from the wrong angle. We should be grateful to have such great people in our lives who are so willing to help us out."_

" _They aren't all bad, you know," Peter said, "they've just taken some time to get used to. And I feel like we're getting there, don't you?"_

 _Mr. Simmons sniffled again and chuckled without humor. "We are," he said slowly, "but I miss our home. I miss being... us."_

" _I miss us too but you're the one who doesn't want him to know, yet. That wasn't my call," he said and I scrunched my brow in confusion._

What had they been talking about? They went to bed shortly after that, as did I, but I never figured out just what it was they were talking about. Would I ever figure it out? Would I always be the one out of the loop? Everyone else seemed to know but me, either that or they simply didn't see what it was that I was seeing.

But that couldn't be true, could it? Everyone in the house had bonded so well, with Mr. Simmons at least, and in ways I'd never imagined. So how could they be blinded to the secret I could tell they were obviously keeping?

" _Darling you left my heart, in pieces on the floor," the music played from behind the door of Ernie's room and I knocked on the door loudly._

" _Mr. Potts?" I called out, "Could you turn it down? I'm trying to do homework," I said though when the door opened I was surprised to see who was standing in front of me._

" _I'm sorry Arnold," Mr. Simmons said. "We were just testing out the old record player."_

 _I raised my brow and eyed him carefully. "Testing it for what?"_

" _The sound of course," Ernie said from just behind Mr. Simmons. "There's nothing that sounds better than a record fresh on the player. Especially a Dino Spumoni one."_

" _You've got that right, Ernie," Mr. Simmons said, "I just can't believe you're as big of a fan of Dino as I am! It's incredible that you have all of his records."_

 _Ernie shrugged with a smile. "What can I say, I'm a big fan. Always have been. There's something about that man's voice that's just, mwah!" he kissed his fingers, "pure perfection."_

" _I totally agree," Mr. Simmons said with a nod and grinned. "You've got some pretty excellent taste in music."_

But Ernie wasn't the only one he'd won over. When it came to the boarders, he seemed to have everyone down to a t.

" _And the cow says, 'moo,'" Oskar read with a smile. "Heh heh heh, that's what he says he says moo!"_

 _Mr. Simmons smiled and nodded his head. "That's right, Oskar. You're getting this down. Soon you'll be reading chapter books in no time."_

" _I just want to read signs so I can walk the neighborhood. Maybe go to my friend's house to play cards instead of always having to have Grandpa drive me there."_

 _Mr. Simmons grinned and set a hand softly on Oskar's shoulder. "That's a very great goal to have, Oskar. And I think, with a little hard work, you'll be able to achieve it with flying colors."_

 _Oskar looked up from the book to make eye contact with Mr. Simmons. "You really think so, Robert? You think I can be smart like the rest of the boarders?"_

" _I know you can, but it won't be without work."_

 _Oskar looked down to the book again and nodded his head. "I can do that. Should I read it again?"_

I frowned at the memory, a good one but one with it's own separate set of questions behind it. "I just don't know how he does it," I mused to Gerald as we crossed the street towards school.

"Does what?" he asked and I sighed while turning to look at him as we walked.

"Win everyone over. It's like somehow he understands _everyone_. I thought for sure some of the boarders would give him trouble. You know how Mr. Simmons can be."

Gerald nodded his head. "A positive pansy, as Helga calls him," he said, "yeah, yeah, I know. But that's a bad thing? Since when? Didn't you WANT them to fit in with everybody?"

"It's not a bad thing, Gerald," I said as we made it across the street to the next slab of sidewalk. "I'm just surprised with how well they fit in with everyone." And by everyone, I meant _everyone_. He even had warmed up to Abner which could be a hard thing to do.

 _I walked into the living room to find Abner sitting on Mr. Simmons' lap, Mr. Simmons rubbing his stomach like he liked so much and cooing down to him._

" _Who's a good little pig? Huh? Who's a good piggy?" Abner snorted in glee as he rolled around on Mr. Simmons' lap. "You are, Abner! You're a good pig!"_

I shook my head at the memory.

"Well if I were you, I'd just be happy the boarders haven't scared them away," Gerald said with a smirk and I sighed.

"I'm definitely thankful they are getting along so well. I mean, they deserve it after everything they've been through. But don't you think feeling comfortable there would mean you reveal yourself, your true self, to a degree?"

"I don't know, man..." Gerald's voice trailed off as I continued.

"I mean, they've HAD to have told someone, don't you think?"

 _I wandered into the laundry room to see Mr. Simmons folding clothes with Suzie Kokoshka._

" _I just sewed together this hole here and you can hardly tell what with where the seam is," he said and Suzie laughed while nodding her head._

" _It's amazing what good sewing can do for an old garment. You wouldn't believe how many pieces of clothing I've had to fix of Oskar's."_

" _Oh, I believe it. Peter is always getting his clothes into some kind of trouble. Back at the house, he'd do this thing where-" they paused mid-conversation before turning to see me standing in the doorway. "Oh, Arnold, hello," Mr. Simmons greeted and I offered a lone wave to the both of them._

" _You alright, Arnold?" Suzie asked with concern in her voice and I shrugged._

" _Just looking for my jacket is all," I said with a shrug. "You guys seen it?"_

" _Ahh," Mr. Simmons said while turning around to take my jacket off of the drying rack where it'd been placed. "I managed to wash it so the blue came out brighter for you." He said with a smile and I took it from him._

" _Uh, thanks Mr. Simmons," I said while leaving the two to laugh and talk about whatever it was they were talking about._

"Maybe they've told someone, Arnold, but what does it really matter? The man is our teacher. He's allowed to have his secrets from his students."

I frowned, knowing Gerald was completely right. It wasn't right of me to try and force something out of him when he either didn't feel comfortable telling me or just didn't want to. But a part of me felt like I had to know, like it was my civic duty or something.

I shook my head from my thoughts and tried to focus on something else.

"It's just so strange to see him outside of school," I said as we approached PS118, "and then to see him IN school, it's all just really weird," I said with a shake of my head.

"I can imagine. But it must be kind of cool, isn't it? I mean, you get free homework help whenever you want don't you?" Gerald asked and I sighed while shaking my head.

"Not exactly... he's so busy with everyone else."

"Really?" Gerald exclaimed. "I'm surprised he doesn't make more time for you. I mean, you ARE the one to invite him there in the first place."

"It's like he's afraid of me or something. I can't figure it out, but everyone else seems to get him in a way I don't."

Gerald shrugged his shoulders while adjusting his backpack over his shoulders. "Maybe it's a grown-up thing," he offered and I looked down at my feet as I thought about what Gerald had said.

" _It was strange," Mr. Hyunh said as Mai smiled beside him from where they sat across Mr. Simmons and Peter on the couch. "I hate it here at first, because I was away from Mai, but Hillwood has way with you."_

 _Mr. Simmons nodded his head sympathetically. "I completely understand. I remember living in the city and thinking the same thing when I moved here. I felt so out of place. I can't imagine what it was like for you to move countries completely."_

" _It was hard," he said, "but worth it to save my daughter's life." He reached over to grab Mai's hand and smiled at her._

" _Oh father," she said while squeezing his hand and I sighed from where I stood and watched in the kitchen. "I can't thank you enough for your sacrifice. You saved me from that horrible situation in a way most parents never could."_

 _Mr. Simmons reached up to wipe at his eyes and clasped his hands together tightly. "It's just so beautiful to see you two together. What an eye-opening experience and a testament of a father's love for his daughter."_

" _It wasn't just my father's love that brought us back together," Mai said and I peeked my head into the room to listen further. "It was Arnold who ultimately found me and brought us back to each other."_

" _That Arnold," Mr. Simmons said while eyeing Peter out the corner of his eye, "he's a special kid, that one."_

But I didn't feel very special. Not special enough to understand what was going on around me.

"I don't know if it's a grown-up thing, Gerald," I replied as we made our way up the steps of our elementary school. "I just feel like it's an anti-Arnold thing."

"Oh Arnold," Gerald said with a laugh, "How could anything be anti-you? You're always the one there for everyone in their time of need no matter WHAT. How could you think that people are against you? All because of some secret you've made up in your head?"

"But that's just it, I don't think I've made it up," I defended myself as Gerald rolled his eyes. "I'm serious, Gerald. There's something going on that nobody's telling me."

"Then why don't you just ask him? I'm sure he'll be honest with you. Mr. Simmons is a good guy, man. I'd bet he'd tell you whatever secret it is you're wondering about in a snap," he said with a literal snap of his fingers.

I raised my brow. "You really think so, Gerald? You think he'd outright tell me something that he's trying to hide from me?"

Gerald shrugged his shoulders as we made our way down the hallway and to our classroom where Mr. Simmons was already waiting for us. "I don't know, man. But if I were you, I'd just ask. If you're wrong, you're wrong, but if you're RIGHT, well, then you'd have proof from the source."

"But what about..." I walked passed Mr. Simmons and made my way our desks with Gerald, "with Peter?" I whispered. "There's something about him too that just makes me want to ask a bunch of questions."

"Yeah?" Gerald asked while setting his backpack down beside the desk. "Like what?"

 _ _Peter made a short, cut-off sound that was almost like "woop" and swerved sideways to avoid crashing into me. "Sorry kid. Didn't hear you coming."_ _

_I looked him up and down as he stood in the robe Grandpa had given him to use for after showers. "It's alright. I can be pretty quiet sometimes."_

" _Well, that makes two of us," He said while trying to move around me, but I moved the same way and we were stuck in a jam once more._

" _Hey, uh," I said before clearing my throat, "Are you liking it here? I mean, all things considered?"_

 _Peter thought about this for a moment before nodding his head. "Sure, Arnold. It's certainly better than living at Pearl's house."_

" _Pearl, that's Mr. Simmons' mom, right?" I asked thought I knew the answer. I just wanted him to talk to me a bit more for once._

" _Yeah, that's right."_

 _I raised a brow. "You know her well?"_

 _Peter scoffed and put the wash brush he was holding over his shoulder. "Far too well for my liking. You remember her, from Thanksgiving, don't you?"_

 _I shrugged my shoulders. "Kind of."_

" _She's... a real piece of work," he managed with a shake of his head. "Never could understand the woman."_

" _That's a shame, what with you and Mr. Simmons being so close and all."_

 _He shrugged and said dryly, "Right."_

" _Is something wrong?" I asked and he shook his head while dodging me to head to his room._

" _Not a thing, Arnold," he muttered before entering his room and closing the door behind him leaving me to myself in the hallway._

I sighed and looked down at my lap from where I sat in my desk. "There's just something about him that seems like he's dying to tell me something but Mr. Simmons won't let him."

Gerald smirked and shook his head. "You sure sound paranoid, Arnold," he commented. "I wouldn't worry so much. They're grown-ups, you know? They are BOUND to act a little weird around kids."

"But the thing is I understand Mr. Simmons, it's just Peter I don't get. I don't get why Mr. Simmons would choose to have the same roommate for so many years and never venture on to get married or have kids."

Gerald shrugged again and pulled out his math textbook from his desk. "Maybe he doesn't want that? I mean the guys a TEACHER, maybe he figures he has ENOUGH kids on a daily basis. I know I would if I had his job."

I thought about this as the bell rang, but even though what Gerald was telling me made sense, my brain simply wouldn't compute around everything I'd observed since they began living with us.

There was something up with those two, and I was going to figure out what it was.

My only fear, was how and when would the timing be right for me to come out and ask the right question to have their secret revealed to me?

But maybe I _was_ just being paranoid. Maybe Gerald was right and they weren't hiding anything and the whole thing was just getting to me for some reason that I couldn't really understand. That was possible. Maybe I harbored hidden feelings of frustration at their fitting in so well because I knew one day they'd have to leave. After all, not only had they made it a point to bond with all the boarders, they'd also made it a point to bond with me.

" _Looks like English isn't agreeing with you tonight, is it Arnold?" Mr. Simmons asked as him and Peter entered the room around 7 to watch the news like they typically did. It was just another thing we'd gotten used to in their routine and nobody complained._

 _I sighed and shook my head. "I just hate grammar. It's so hard and I over think everything."_

 _Mr. Simmons and Peter took their usual seat at the couch while Peter reached for the remote to turn the television on and Mr. Simmons leaned over to look over my shoulder at my work._

" _You want to know a secret?" He asked and I immediately snapped my head to turn around and look at him._

 _Was this is? Was this the secret I'd been waiting to hear?_

" _What's that?" I asked and Mr. Simmons smiled a sly smile._

" _I also hate grammar."_

 _My face dropped to a small frown and I nodded my head. "Oh, yeah," I said._

" _I even have a hard time grading your papers sometimes because, I too, am very bad at it. There's a lot of possibilities to go over when it comes to finding the right propositions and comma usage."_

 _I closed my book and leaned up against the couch from where I sat on the floor. "So why do we have to learn it then?"_

" _State requirements," he said with a shrug. "But that doesn't mean it isn't useful. All things I teach are useful to some degree. That's a teacher's job."_

 _I smiled and nodded my head. "Yeah, I guess you're right."_

" _Just know that if you ever need any help, you can always ask me. I may just be living here as a friend, but I can be of help too on occasion," he said with a wink and Peter smirked from where he sat on the couch._

 _I looked between the both of them and sighed. "Mr. Simmons, can I ask you something?"_

 _His face grew nervous and he shared a look with Peter for a moment before returning to look at me. "Wh-what's that, Arnold?"_

" _Are you glad you're here?" I asked and he smiled warmly while resting a hand on my shoulder._

" _I'm very honored you invited us into your home, yes," he said. "You've all been so gracious to us. You're a very special kid, you know."_

 _I nodded my head having been told that before by Mr. Simmons. "Thanks," I said with a smile before his face turned mock serious and he pointed down at my assignment._

" _Now, you'd better get working on that worksheet, Arnold. I'd hate to have to fail you," he said with another wink, because I knew he'd never fail me._

 _He'd just try harder to help because that's the kind of guy Simmons was._

 _We were a lot alike in that sense and it was comforting to know that he was just around the corner if I ever needed anything._

The only bummer was that I needed some clarity as my brain was frying itself to pieces over the supposed secret I was probably imagining. How did one even go about asking such a thing from someone like Mr. Simmons?

And I couldn't ask Peter. While we'd gotten on more of a talking basis as of recently, we still weren't friends by any means and I wouldn't be able to bring myself to ask him about much of anything, especially something personal like a secret.

I tapped my pencil on the desk in frustration as class began, Mr. Simmons greeting us with a smile that grew more genuine with each passing day. He seemed happier, like was learning to cope with everything that had happened to him and I couldn't help but feel glad that I was at least in some part a reason for that. It felt good to be doing something kind for my teacher who'd always been so understanding himself when it came to life.

But would he be understanding about my curiosity when it came to his own life and how he lived it? That was the question that haunted me all throughout class and for the rest of the day. Would he truly understand why I had to know so badly? And better yet, would _I_ ever truly understand why I had to know in the first place?

* * *

 _ **Shoutout to Just4Funfiction for their review on the story- the fact that you feel like this could be a real episode is really what Spec and I are going for when writing this and we can't thank you enough for your review!**_

 ** _Anyway, Please be sure to leave a review and let us know what you think! this was a pretty hard chapter to write and i really hope you all enjoyed the fun flashbacks of what life has been like at the boarding house with the new additions to the mix :D Please review, we'd love to know what you think!_**

 ** _-Polka & Spec_**


	4. Chapter 4

I lay on my bed and stared up at the window and out to the blue sky above me. It was Saturday, a day to be celebrated in the life of a ten-year-old, but I was conflicted.

Sure, I'd had my breakfast which was blueberry pancakes that Peter made. And sure, they were delicious. Sure, I'd watched my morning cartoons, and sure I'd enjoyed them, to a degree. But all the while my brain was in distress at all the thoughts roaming my head.

The building was taking longer to fix than expected; a possible additional month added to the time frame of when Mr. Simmons' and his roommate's house was scheduled to be completed. They were anxious to leave, I could tell, but nobody could be more anxious than me.

And I wasn't anxious about their departure from the boarding house.

I was still focused on the secret I couldn't get out of anybody in the boarding house no matter how hard I tried. I'd asked nearly everyone what they thought of Peter and Mr. Simmons, even Grandpa and Grandma, but they all adamantly refused to tell me more than that they thought they were great people and completely welcome in the boarding house for as long as it took.

Which was great, don't get me wrong, but it didn't offer me any help in figuring out what it was I suspected was going on between Peter and Mr. Simmons.

I didn't even have a clue.

I rolled over to lay on my side and stare at my bookshelf, my eyes staring at nothing in particular as my mind drifted off.

Not only was I no closer to discovering just what it was everyone was hiding from me, but I had somehow drove a wedge between me and my own teacher. Maybe he'd caught wind of my questions to the boarders, after all, it wasn't unlike them to gossip about things and spread stuff all around the house. That was part of the territory for them.

What if he thought I was getting too close to discovering his secret, that he was pushing me away instead in hopes it would get me off his trail.

"But I have nothing," I said to myself while rolling over restlessly to the other side of my bed. "I'm no closer to figuring this out than I was when I first started," I sighed and blinked a few times before sitting straight up in my bed.

But there had to be something. There just had to be!

I huffed out a deep breath and buried my head in my hands. I'd thought of everything. I'd thought of embarrassing secrets and shameful secrets and even weird secrets like them being spies for the government but nothing I thought of made any sense. I'd talked to Gerald and he thought I was crazy. I'd talked to the boarders and they were clearly hiding it from me with no intention of giving me any answers so what was the point anymore? What was the point of trying to decipher something nobody was willing to give me any clues on anyway?

I rubbed at my eyes for a moment and then dropped my hands from my face; my body still hunched over in exhaustion from debating this for so long.

"That's it," I said to myself while pushing on my knees to stand up while letting out a long, rattly groan. "If I don't stop thinking about this, my head's going to explode. I need some air." And with that, I made my way to the door of my room and exited while trotting down the steps and heading for the door to the boarding house.

"I'm going for a walk, Grandpa!" I called out before opening the door and stopping dead in my tracks.

Or rather, I was _blocked_ dead in my tracks by none other than Mr. Simmons himself who was sitting sadly on the steps of the stoop; his hands cradling his head as he sat curled in a ball on the cement steps.

"Mr. Simmons?" I asked and he glanced up to look at me from over his shoulder.

"Oh!" He said surprised before turning back around. "A-Arnold, I'm sorry, am I in your way?" he asked before scooting over to give me space to trek down the stoop steps.

I stayed in place and shrugged my shoulders. "Not really," I said. "I was just going to go for...well, to get some fresh air."

"Sounds like what I was doing," he said with a humorless chuckle and I shoved my hands into the pockets of my jacket.

"Well," I said after a beat of silence between the two of us, "You want some company?"

Mr. Simmons scooted over a bit more and I sat beside him on the cool of the cement steps. "How are you doing?" I asked sympathetically and he shrugged his shoulders while staring off into space.

"Just fine," he said with a sigh, but I didn't buy it. I'm sure a lot was on his mind and he too needed to escape the house just to clear it. I wondered why Peter wasn't out here with him, the two were practically attached at the hip.

"Where's Peter?" I asked and Mr. Simmons and he gestured over his shoulder to inside the boarding house.

"He's doing the laundry and tidying up our room," he said quietly. "Peter is a very neat and organized person, like myself."

"Oh," I said before nodding my head to myself and clearing my throat. "How uh, how are thing at the house? Is everyone treating you alright?" It was a stupid question, I knew everyone loved Peter and Mr. Simmons, especially Mr. Simmons as Peter didn't talk much or offer much insight on things. But I had to think of something to talk about. It'd been so long since Mr. Simmons had been within a conversation-length-radius of me besides at school.

"Oh, everybody is just wonderful, Arnold. You make up quite the family."

I shrugged and glanced away from him. "I guess we do, yeah. I'm always nervous people will not get along well with everybody or will judge our living situation."

This surprised Mr. Simmons and he looked over at me with a questionable look. "Why's that?"

"Well," I started while reaching up to rub at the back of my neck. "they can be a bit...overwhelming at first. I remember I used to be afraid to let Gerald over to the house for that very reason." I dropped my arm from my neck and smiled. "But he loved them all. So I guess there was never anything to be afraid of."

"That's true, you shouldn't be afraid to show your unique family to people, Arnold. They are a very special group of people with their own special gifts and traits. That's what makes your family different than anybody else's. And they all care very deeply about you," He said seriously while setting a hand on my shoulder. "which, Arnold, is all that matters in a true family."

Biting my lip, I closed my eyes and asked a question I wasn't sure if I should ask. "What about your family, Mr. Simmons? Do you like them?"

He paused for a moment before dropping his hand from my shoulder and setting it gently in his lap. "My family is also, like yours, very unique. They have their downfalls but I love my family." He sighed before looking down at his hands in his lap. "I sure miss my father though," he said sadly and I raised a brow.

"What happened to your father?" I asked curiously and he interlocked his hands together and took a deep breath.

"When I was in my second year of college back in '81, my father passed away from leukemia," he said sadly, "It was one of the hardest times of my life. My father and I were very close."

I frowned, "I'm really sorry to hear that, Mr. Simmons. What was your father's name?" I asked next and Mr. Simmons continued staring down at his lap.

"Elliot. Elliot Simmons. He was... the greatest dad a kid could ever have." He said thoughtfully and I looked away from him with hurt in my heart for even bringing it up.

"How did they find out it was leukemia?" I asked and Mr. Simmons turned to look at me while thinking back on the memory.

"My father began getting bruises that wouldn't go away. At first he blamed it on clumsiness, but as more and more developed, he went to see a doctor, curious if his potassium levels were simply low or there was another cause." He sighed and looked away from me. "But there _was_ another cause. It was the leukemia and it was too far advanced for him to do much of anything."

"Wow," I said softly while digesting the story Mr. Simmons had just shared with me. "That's... that's awful."

He nodded his head sadly. "It really was. But I have a lot to remember him by. His favorite apron, the picture album I made of us after he passed..." his voice trailed off before he remembered something and then frowned while saying very quietly; just above a whisper, "at least, I _did_ have things to remember him by..." he sighed and rested his head in his hands. "...before the fire, that is."

I reached over to gently touch his back. "You still have your memories though, Mr. Simmons," I said reassuringly. "And those are things nobody can take away from you, not even a fire."

"Thank you, Arnold," he said warmly though with a heavy heart. "You're very right."

"I mean," I started while taking a deep breath and forcing out some of the thoughts I'd buried away since our trip to San Lorenzo. "I know it isn't the same, but before we found my parents, I was very sad that I didn't have anything besides a few photos and my father's journal. Unlike you, I didn't even have memories of my parents and that was hard," I said with a nod of my head before returning to my thought process. "But now that I _do_ have memories of my parents, their being gone, while even just for missionary work for a few months, the memories help. It keeps them alive even when they aren't here."

Mr. Simmons offered a weak smile. "I'm truly honored to have been a part of your journey in finding them, Arnold. It was... a very special journey, but one that I will never forget."

I smiled back and nodded my head. "It was rewarding to have my friends with me, you included."

"You'd consider me a friend?" Mr. Simmons asked with a raise of his brow and I nodded my head.

"I mean, you're still my teacher, but at this point, I consider you to be family. You've helped me through a lot and been there when times were really tough. That makes somebody family in my book."

Mr. Simmons eyes welled up slightly as he smiled a stronger smile. "That means a great deal to me, Arnold."

"Any time," I said mirroring his expression and we grew silent where we sat on the stoop. The birds flew by in the sky in their v formation and the clouds rolled along the horizon of the bright sunny Saturday that we were enjoying the fresh air of. It was nice to sit in silence with somebody and not feel like you had to say anything. I wondered if him and Peter often had those moments.

"So, Peter," I blurted out while thinking aloud, "Can I ask you something about him?" I asked boldly, my curiosity too much about the two of them that it had to be voiced. I hoped we were close enough to ask about such a thing, but now was a better time than ever.

Mr. Simmons' head shot over to me with a nervous look behind his eyes as he hesitated. "Uh... sur-sure, Arnold. What would you like to know?"

I swallowed hard trying to convince myself out of the words I'd kept bottled inside of me since they first arrived at the boarding house. "Why...why did he come with you? To here, I mean."

Mr. Simmons turned away from me and swallowed hard. "Well, Arnold, he needed somewhere to stay too after the fire, so he came with me to my mother's house and then, well, here."

"That must make you two really close," I assumed and he nodded his head.

"We've been... together... for years now," he said while continuing to avoid my gaze.

"You've lived together for years?" I asked, practically repeated, and Mr. Simmons nodded his head.

"Yes. We have."

"...Huh..." I mused to myself before taking another breath and continuing on with the part that confused me most. "Can I ask ... why?"

Mr. Simmons began to play with his fingers in his lap while sighing and saying more to himself than me, "...Oh no, how do I explain this..."

I raised my brow questionably and asked, "Explain what?"

Mr. Simmons took a deep and shaky breath, his hands fiddling faster and faster with each word he spoke, his body clearly anxious about the explanation behind the question I'd just posed. "Well, Arnold, Peter lives with me, because...well, instead of a wife, I have him."

That wasn't exactly the answer I was expecting. It wasn't even anything I'd ever considered, and I'd considered a lot.

I nodded my head thoughtfully and with my own shaky breath, I said, "Oh... so you... you l-love him? Like that?"

Mr. Simmons paused for a long time, a moment that felt like hours as I awaited his response. Finally, with a small nod of his head, he spoke. "I do, Arnold. I have for a long time."

I thought to myself in deep concentration; thought about every moment I'd seen the two together and how they reacted with each other on a daily basis. Peter always very protective of Mr. Simmons, the way he always kept a hand on his back and pulled out chairs for him. Even their secret conversations that I'd quietly listened in on began to fit together in the puzzle that was the mystery of the two of them.

I nodded my head. "Well that..." I began before letting out a breath, "that makes... sense," I finally said and Mr. Simmons continued to stare down into his fidgeting lap while biting his lip.

"..It's okay if it doesn't, Arnold," he said quietly as if ashamed that he had told me, something I didn't wish he felt. "I know it's not something that people like to talk about."

"But maybe it should be," I blurted out almost defensively. "Maybe if more people talked about it, they'd understand it more."

Mr. Simmons turned his head to look at me with bright red cheeks. "You really think so?" he asked and I nodded my head.

"I mean, I get it. You love him the same as any other couple loves each other, right?" I asked and he nodded his head while waiting to see where I was going with this.

"Yes, I do," he said.

"So what's so wrong with that?" That was the only part that confused me. Why keep it such a secret if it was all so simple?

"There's nothing _wrong_ with it, Arnold," Mr. Simmons said quietly. "It just isn't something most people are very comfortable with."

"Love? People aren't comfortable with love?" I asked, genuinely confused and with a sad sigh, Mr. Simmons nodded his head.

"Believe it or not, but no, most people aren't. At least, not in all the forms it comes in." he said and I shook my head.

"That doesn't seem right," I muttered and Mr. Simmons agreed.

"No, it really doesn't, does it?"

"So," I began to ask, "Are you two married then? Like other couples?"

Mr. Simmons shook his head. "No, Arnold, marriage like ours isn't exactly smiled upon in this day and age. However, a few years ago we did a private ceremony and exchanged rings like any other couple would and that was enough for the two of us."

"Did your mother come? Your family? Do they... support you?" I asked in a flood of questions and Mr. Simmons shrugged his shoulders.

"We didn't feel it necessary to invite our families. They don't... completely understand our love and while that's a hard thing to accept, it doesn't mean we don't still love them." Mr. Simmons quietly thought back and smiled to himself. "No, we just invited our close friends who understand the two of us and it was a truly beautiful experience."

"Well that's good," I said, though I still couldn't believe such a concept being so different than any other kind of love out in the world. If two people care about each other and wanted to be together for the rest of their lives, why stop them from doing so? It didn't seem right. It didn't _feel_ like it should be right.

I blinked a few times before trying to understand more about Mr. Simmons' and Peter's relationship. "So how did you two meet?" I asked and Mr. Simmons smiled fondly while thinking back to the memory his brain was locating.

"I must have been about your age, maybe older, about sixth grade I think," he said before shaking his head nervously, his smile still set on his lips, "and I was in our school's auditorium working on some assignments in the quiet while secretly hoping I could get a sneak peek at the choir rehearsal, but they weren't in there that day. I thought I was alone in the auditorium, but just as I began to work on my assignment, I heard something."

Intrigued, I leaned in towards him. "What did you hear?" I asked and he smiled wistfully and turned to look at me.

"Music. The most beautiful music I'd ever heard coming from a stranger playing the guitar a few seats away from me. I must not have looked hard enough when I entered the auditorium, but he was there, and he was playing his guitar," he paused while remembering the memory and said with a longing sigh, "and _singing_."

I raised my brow. "Peter sings?" I asked in surprise and Mr. Simmons nodded his head.

"I couldn't believe the way this voice was drawing me in," he continued, though lost in his memories. "I was like a ship on the ocean being lured away by the beautiful melodies of a traitorous Siren."

"So what did you do next?" I asked, completely enthralled by the story of their first meeting.

He chuckled to himself, "Well, it was awkward at first, we were just kids then with no idea what we were doing or would become, but I made my way over to him and listened until he finished his song and then told him how good I thought he was while scaring him half to death," he said, still chuckling at the story he was telling. "Anyway, Peter appreciated the comment and we got to talking and I suppose, as one would say, the rest is history."

"Wow," I said, "I can't believe you've known each other that long," I mused and he nodded his head.

"Yes. It's amazing the people you meet at such a young age who you hardly know will change your life forever."

I thought about what he said and nodded my head in thought. "I wonder if I've met anyone that will change my life in the future..." I thought out loud and Mr. Simmons smiled.

"I'm sure you have and you don't even know it," he said and I grinned back at him.

"Think I've met _my_ soul mate yet?" I asked and Mr. Simmons beamed at my term and shrugged his shoulders.

"Who knows? You'll have to wait and find out, won't you?"

I laughed to myself. "Rhonda's marriage predictor says it will be Helga," I told him with a disbelieving shake of my head. "I kinda doubt that though."

"I wouldn't count anybody out, Arnold," he said seriously though with a hint of a smile. "Helga is a pretty remarkable student. She may surprise you."

I thought back to our times in the jungle and on the FTi roof, though we hardly talked about them now. Still, despite the way she still treated me at times, there was something about Helga that made me feel funny in my stomach ever since the last time we kissed. Maybe Mr. Simmons was right- I'd just have to wait and see.

"Maybe," I said, entertaining the idea for a brief moment. "Maybe how Peter surprised you?" I pressed and he shrugged his shoulders.

"Maybe, Arnold. Maybe. We never know what the future holds. We can only live in the present and hope it all works out in the end." his face fell and he looked down at his lap once again. "Kind of like I'm trying to do now, I suppose."

"Well this isn't forever," I reminded him, "you'll be back in your house sooner than you know it. I'm just sorry you had to go through all of this in the first place."

Mr. Simmons shrugged his shoulders. "There's a reason for everything," he mumbled and I nodded my head.

"And maybe, now that you've told me about you and Peter," I started before looking shyly down at my own lap, "maybe you can stop avoiding me...?"

Mr. Simmons looked up and over to me with sympathetic eyes. "Oh, Arnold, I'm so sorry about that. I just wasn't sure how you would take such a thing and the boarders were telling me that you kept asking and-"

I shook my head while hoisting myself up from the stoop and brushing off the butt of my pants. "I understand, Mr. Simmons. Just know that I understand and even if the world doesn't support your happiness together, I do." I said with a smile. "Everyone deserves to be happy with whoever they choose."

Mr. Simmons smiled weakly and nodded his head. "Thank you, Arnold. That means a lot to me."

With a nod of my head, I stood up straight and stretched my arms up above my head for a moment. "Well, I think I'm going to go back inside and work on some homework," I announced. "I might as well get something done this weekend."

Mr. Simmons chuckled. "Remember to be a kid though, Arnold. You're already so mature, I think that you should just enjoy being a kid every once in a while."

I smiled down to him and nodded my head. "I'll try, Mr. Simmons. Are you going to be alright out here?" I asked and he smiled before turning to look back out to the street.

"I'll be just fine, Arnold, thank you."

I turned around and opened the door, a flood of animals leaving the house as I did so; Mr. Simmons jumping back to give them some room as they flew down the stoop. Just as I was about to head inside, Mr. Simmons called for me.

"Oh, Arnold?" He said and I turned around to look at him over my shoulder.

"Yeah?"

He turned to look at me over his and smiled warmly in my direction. "Thank you for being so understanding. You're a very special kid."

I shrugged my shoulders nonchalantly and grinned. "Love isn't hard to understand, Mr. Simmons. It's other people that are," I said before turning back around and heading inside to work on my homework; my brain finally at peace after discovering the secret I'd been in search of for weeks.

* * *

 ** _This was a very fun chapter to tackle, so please leave a review and let Spec and I know what you think!_**

 ** _-Polka & Spec_**


	5. Chapter 5

It'd been six weeks since Mr. Simmons and Peter had moved in. Two (?) since Mr. Simmons finally told me about his relationship with Peter, and all things considered, life was going smoothly.

Of course, I knew not to tell anybody, not even Gerald, as it wasn't anyone's business but Mr. Simmons', but it was nice to know the truth and to see them in a light I never had before; a light that showed me just how important the two were to each other.

It was refreshing.

But despite knowing Mr. Simmons' secret, life resumed normalcy, even for the boarding house. And dare I say it, even Mr. Simmons' and Peter seemed to have lightened up at the weight being lifted from their shoulders of trying to hide their relationship for my sake. Not to mention, the building was coming along smoothly and it seemed that they would be set to move back in any week now. Things were looking up, it seemed.

At least until the phone call.

I sat in the living room watching a documentary on Dino Spumoni with Mr. Simmons, Ernie, Grandma and Peter (though he mostly read the newspaper and glanced up every now and again). It was pretty enjoyable to watch such a thing with a few of his greatest fans to date. We were roughly through half of the show when the phone rang and Grandma got up from her chair to make her way towards the phone.

The rest of us watched on until Grandma called out, "General Almond, you're being summoned!" And all eyes turned to Mr. Simmons as he smiled and got up from the couch to take the phone from Grandma.

"Hello, this is Robert Simmons," he greeted whomever was on the other line. "Oh, yes, hello Paul," he said while gesturing for Peter to come to where he was standing with the phone and he hoisted himself up off the couch to stand by his side as he continued talking. "Sure, sure," he said while nodding his head, Peter watching on in curiosity. "Well we haven't been back yet but they're expected to finish it any time no-"

He cut off his sentence and nodded his head. "Right. Yes, I understand that, but as our insurance company shouldn't you-" he stopped again and reached out to steady himself with Peter's shoulder. "Uh huh. R-right. But we just lost our-"

Curiosity took over the house as we muted the television and too began to gather around the phone while waiting for Mr. Simmons to finish the call.

"I just don't understand how you could... how you could DO this to us? We've been such loyal cus-"

Whoever it was on the other line, this 'Paul', he certainly didn't have much sympathy in letting people finish their sentences.

"Robert," Peter whispered sternly, "Let me talk to him," he offered but Mr. Simmons shook his head and held out a hand to silence him.

"Paul, you can't just... how could you..." his voice trailed off as he looked down to his feet and solemnly nodded his head. "Right. Your hands are tied. I understand. Goodbye." he finally said before hanging the phone up on the receiver and turning to face Peter who was desperately looking at him for any sort of information. "It was the insurance company," he mumbled before shaking his head. The rest of the boarders filtered into the small hallway and watched on as Mr. Simmons took a deep breath while still holding onto Peter's shoulder as if it was his only source of steadying him.

We knew whatever was going to come out of Mr. Simmons' mouth wouldn't be good. It certainly didn't seem like they'd had a very good conversation. The silence between us all grew tense as we waited for more information and I could feel my heart racing. Nobody wanted to be the first to speak. I almost opened my mouth to say something...when a sob I didn't think could possibly come out of such a small man, erupted from my teacher. __"We aren't getting ANYTHING BACK."__ _he exclaimed before losing his head into Peter's shoulder._ I watched as Peter curled his arms around Mr. Simmons and held him tight. Glancing back and forth between them, my grandparents, and all the boarders I could tell that everybody had one thing in common- we all looked devastated.

"Well what exactly did they say?" Peter asked while rubbing Mr. Simmons back and he shook his head while burying it further into Peter's shoulder.

"The insurance isn't paying for anything," he finally spoke in a broken voice as Peter continued to hold Mr. Simmons close to him and rubbed his heaving back. "The building's going to be repaired but that's it. We get to go back to an empty apartment."

Peter shook his head in disbelief and his mouth curled into a deep frown. "Lucky __us,"__ he hissed, trying so hard to blink back more tears that ended up rolling down his cheeks anyways.

It was one thing to see Mr. Simmons cry, but to see tears falling down Peter's strong cheekbones? It almost seemed surreal. Here was the man who was so stoic and strong for the both of them... the man I had only had near one conversation with since he moved in, and he was _crying_.

We all stared on, unsure as to what to say, what _any_ of us could possibly say in such a time and instead looked between all of us in uncertainty at what exactly this meant for our two new friends.

But I knew what this meant. I knew _exactly_ what this meant, and it meant they would go home to nothing- absolutely nothing. They were about to have to start ALL OVER again and their insurance company didn't even care.

I was enraged. I couldn't stop my fists from clenching at my sides as rage filled my system. How could people be so uncaring for such wonderful people- people who would never even hurt a fly? Wasn't that what insurance was for anyway? To help people move on with their lives after tragedy? What was the point of having insurance if it wasn't even going to do anything?

And poor Mr. Simmons and Peter. They stood by the phone as Mr. Simmons sobbed and Peter silently allowed the tears to surpass his eyes and fall down his cheeks. I couldn't take seeing them like this. I couldn't handle seeing two people who had grown to become part of my family suffer so much and over something so heartbreaking as human insensitivity.

I couldn't do it. So I turned, and I ran. And I locked myself in my bedroom.

Slamming the door behind me, I angrily swiped my hands over my desk and knocked over the lamp that had resided there. "How could they DO this!" I yelled in anger while bringing my hands up to rest on either side of my head. "How could ANYBODY do this? To THEM?" I asked nobody in particular as I made my way to flop down onto my bed.

There had to be something I could do, there just had to be... but what? What could somebody like me do to help in a situation I hardly had anything to do with.

I had to talk to somebody. I had to get out some ideas and try to figure out a plan as to how to help them.

Shooting straight up from my bed, I made my way over to my phone and dialed the only number I knew that could help me in a situation such as this.

After a few rings, the familiar voice picked up. "Hello?"

"Gerald, it's me," I said urgently. "I need you to come over pronto."

He adjusted the phone in his hands and sighed. "What's up, man?"

"I'll explain when you get here but Gerald?"

"Yeah?" He asked.

"Bring your thinking cap. We've got a lot of work to do."

* * *

Gerald sat on my bed and raised his brow. "So they aren't going to give them anything?" He asked and I shook my head while pacing around my room.

"No, not a thing. The insurance company doesn't care AT ALL."

"Look man," he said while leaning forward towards me as I paced, "First of all, if we are going to do ANYTHING, you have GOT to calm yourself down."

I shook my head furiously. "And how am I supposed to do that when this is happening?"

"I don't know, focus, Arnold. Fixing things is what you do best so just... focus on that."

I took a deep breath and made my way to sit on the couch. "Okay, okay, I'm calm."

"Arnold..." he said in disbelief and I took another soothing breath while closing my eyes before opening them again as my heart rate began to fell.

"Okay..." I said calmly, " _Now_ I'm calm."

Gerald leaned back on the bed and nodded his head. "That's better. Now. What is the plan?"

I reached up to rub at the bridge of my nose and shrugged my shoulders. "I guess I don't really know," I said before shrugging my shoulders and leaning back to rest against the back of the couch. "What can we really do? Write a letter or something?"

Gerald scoffed and shook his head. "Write a letter. Right. Because a letter from two ten-year-olds is going to really stick it to some insurance pricks." He sighed. "I'm sure they'd just use it for basketball practice through their fancy waste paper baskets."

"Well there has to be some kind of something we can do to get their attention."

"Arnold," Gerald said slowly. "I think there isn't anything we can do when it comes to the insurance company. Like you said Mr. Simmons said- their hands are pretty much tied. There's nothing we can do."

I took in his words with a grain of salt and realized he was right- there was no sense in trying to get the insurance company to rethink their end of this. They were a company and they were going to do what they were going to do no matter what two ten-year-olds said or did. We could write as many letters, picket their company for hours, and still they'd just sit inside and deny Mr. Simmons and Peter of everything they should be entitled to- and there was nothing we could do about it.

But that's when it hit me.

"Gerald," I said tentatively, "maybe you're right."

His eyes widened as he stared at me. "I am?"

"Maybe there _is_ nothing we can do about the _insurance_ company, but there _are_ things we can do otherwise." I said with a small smile growing on my face though Gerald wasn't picking up on what I was talking about.

"You've lost me, man. What are you talking about 'there are things we can do otherwise?'" He asked and I stood up from the couch to walk towards him and stand directly in front of where he sat.

"What if we restored their house FOR them? What if we managed to get a bunch of things to refurnish their house and then when they went home, they could see all this stuff and realize they don't have to start completely over?"

Gerald crossed his arms and raised a brow. "And just HOW are we supposed to pull THAT off, Arnold? We're 10."

"Well with help, of course," I said, "I'm sure the boarders would help us with carrying things and maybe if we talked to our classmates they'd be willing to come and help set things up once the apartment is finished and-"

"Woah, woah, woah, hang on there buddy," he said while standing up himself. "Arnold, Arnold, __Arnold."__ _He reached out and set a hand on my shoulder with sympathetic eyes. "Listen,_ I know I've said you're a bold kid and all, but there's a HUGE difference between bold and just plain CRAZY."

I frowned and eyed him. "You said inviting Mr Simmons to live with us was crazy too but __that__ worked out, didn't it?" I questioned him and he stood quietly as I continued to talk. "Can't you have real faith in me just __once?__ I think that if we can get enough people on board, this idea will work. Think of how much we could get for them if we all worked together to do it."

"And you REALLY think people would agree to help?" He asked with a raise of his brow and I nodded my head with confidence.

"Yes, I do. But we won't know unless we ask, now will we?"

Gerald uncrossed his arms with a sigh and shrugged his shoulders. "Alright, Arnold. I'll bite. But just how are we going to get a mass of people together to help out with a project this big? And more importantly, how are we going to do it without Mr. Simmons finding out? I mean, he IS our teacher, you know."

I smiled with an idea at the forefront of my mind. "I've got an idea about our classmates, don't worry about that, but its adults we'll need help from."

"I thought you said the boarders would help out?" He asked and I nodded my head while reaching up to scratch at my head.

"Yeah, they will, I'm sure, but we'll need more help than just them. We'll need actual things to put in the apartment."

"Right..." Gerald said his voice trailing off. "And just where are we supposed to FIND those things, huh?"

"I mean, there are plenty of different organizations around town that donate things to people all the time. We'll just need some people to help us with additional things besides the obvious- bed, couch, chairs, tables, all that we can get but it's the other stuff that will really make the house feel like home."

Gerald nodded his head in thought while chewing on his lip. "You're sure they'd want a bunch of knick knacks from random people?" He wondered and I shook my head.

"Not random people, Gerald, his friends and family."

"And you propose we do this HOW exactly?"

I thought for a moment before snapping my fingers as the idea hit me. "The next PTA meeting- it's this week. We could get the class to come with us and pitch our idea to them. I'm sure they'd want to help a fellow teacher out, don't you think?"

"I don't know, Arnold..." Gerald said with genuine uncertainty. "That's a tall bill, going to the PTA board and all."

"But it's worth a shot, right? People could donate things they don't want any more or don't need and we could furnish their house so it was like they never left. We could get utensils, and plates and things like toiletries and other goodies. Maybe we could even get some art to hang around the house and really give it that something-special feeling."

Gerald nodded his head, taking in my idea and studying it strategically like he usually did. "So you really think this could work?" He asked after a minute or two and I nodded my head with a smile on my face.

"I really do. I mean, like you said, he's our _teacher_. And he's the best one we've ever had. You'd think people would want to help them out, especially Mr. Simmons after all he's done for us. It's the least we can do."

Gerald sighed and reluctantly agreed. "Alright, man. You work on class tomorrow with whatever plan you've got, and I've got your back. Deal?" He asked while outstretching his fist for our signature handshake.

I grinned and touched my fist to his while our fingers wiggled to and fro. "Deal."

* * *

Class went by fast as I awaited recess and my chance to convince our class to help out Mr. Simmons. I was sure I could convince everyone to do it, but I still felt nervous despite my confidence. What if they said no? What if they thought it was a stupid idea like Gerald had?

But I had convinced Gerald otherwise, so convincing the others shouldn't be too hard, right?

I watched as my classmates played on the playground, leaping from bar to bar and swinging on the swingset.

"Well Arnold?" Gerald said as he stood beside me with his hands on his hips. "You gonna do this thing or what?"

I took a deep breath and clenched my fists at my side anxiously. "I mean, I want to, but I'm nervous. What if... what if they say no?"

Gerald crossed his arms and shook his head. "Mm mm MM, Arnold," he hummed, "If it's ANYONE these guys will listen to, it's you, you know? You just got to get in there and give them a pitch they can't forget, that's all."

"A pitch they won't forget," I repeated in thought before clearing my throat and moving to stand on top of the picnic table just out front of the playground.

"Can I have your attention, please?" I called out, though nobody stopped playing to listen to me. I glanced over at Gerald who gestured for me to go on and I took a deep breath before yelling, "Hey! Can I have your attention!"

The playground stopped it's bustling motion and all turned to stare at me where I stood high above them. I cleared my throat and awkwardly continued.

"Guys, I have a uh... something to pitch to you all." I said and Helga smirked from across the playground while taking a few steps towards me.

"Oh boy, _Ar_ nold has an _idea_ guys..." she said with slight mock and I ignored her comment before continuing.

"Look, I'm sure you guys all know what has happened with Mr. Simmons as of lately," I started and Sheena piped in with her hands clasped at her chest and a sad expression on her face.

"His house burnt down. It's so sad," she squeaked and Helga rolled her eyes.

"Oh brother," she muttered, but I went on no matter her comments. I knew how Helga worked. I knew who she was underneath everything she put on and I knew that she didn't mean to come across so mean. So I went on.

"I think, I mean, I propose, we do something to help him out." I said and Helga put her hands on her hips and glared at me from across the playground.

"And just what did you have in mind, huh? We rebuild his house? Cause last I checked, the city was on it."

I nodded my head slowly, thinking through my words before speaking again. "You're right, Helga," I agreed as the crowd of kids glanced around each other and Helga's eyes widened.

"I am?" She asked and I continued to nod my head.

"Yeah, you are, but there's something you don't know." I said while looking down at my feet and taking the opportunity to step off of the picnic table and meet everyone at their level.

"Yeah?" Helga urged, "And what's that football-head?"

"Well," I said slowly, "The city may be rebuilding the house, but the insurance company isn't going to pay to replace anything that Mr. Simmons and his... roommate...own."

"So?" She asked and I narrowed my eyes.

"So," I started, "that means once it's all built, he will return to an empty house... no bed, no couch, no furniture, no... anything."

Quiet mumbles roamed around the playground as kids talked to one another discussing what I'd just revealed.

I let them talk for a moment before taking a breath and going on. "So what I'm proposing is that we do something about it."

"How are __we__ supposed to help?" Curly interjected above the mumbling.

"Yeah Arnold, we're just kids." Eugene agreed. "I don't think there's a whole lot __we__ can do." I couldn't believe what I was hearing. And from Eugene? The most optimistic kid in probably the WHOLE CITY?

"That might _seem_ true, but don't you remember when we saved the neighborhood? Or when we saved my parents from the jungle? There's a lot that we kids can do if we set our minds to it. And I think this is no different."

Eugene stepped out from the crowd and looked at me sheepishly with Sheena at his side. "Well then, Arnold... what should we do?"

"I know!" Curly said while jumping up to grab onto one of the monkey bars and swinging himself up to sit on top of it. "We could storm the city! Get all the animals from the zoo and-"

"Oh pipe down you ignorant weasel," Helga growled. "Give Arnold the chance to tell us what he has in mind!" She then glanced around herself at everyone staring at her before changing her tune. "I mean... let's see what hair-brained idea Arnoldo has dreamed up in that weird shaped head of his."

All eyes turned to me again and I swallowed hard at the silence around me while trying to articulate just what it was I had in mind.

"Well," I started hesitantly, "I was thinking that maybe we could donate some things we don't use for the cause. Anything, really. Plates, silverware, knick knacks... anything just to brighten up the house."

"What about the furniture?" Someone chimed in and the rest of the kids responded with their own "Yeah!"s and other such questions.

I settled my hands down to try and quiet the crowd. "I figured maybe we could go around to some businesses and see if they wouldn't donate some items to help furnish the place. There are loads of organizations around town and if we all went together, they might listen to our cause," I said and a few people nodded their heads in agreement while most everyone else stared at me unconvinced.

"You really think they'll listen to a bunch of 10 year olds asking for free furniture?" Rhonda asked with a hand on her hip. "I mean, nobody will listen to us."

The crowd agreed with her and I held my hands up in an effort to stop their chattering. "I know, I thought about that too. And I figured, if all of us got together, we could join the PTA meeting this week and see if any of the adults there would want to help us."

"The PTA meeting? Really?" Helga asked with a raise of her brow. "And what makes you think they'll stop their meeting just to hear what we have to say?"

"That's the thing," I said while taking a step towards the crowd looking at me with anxious eyes. "Mr. Simmons is a great teacher, one of the best, is he not?"

The kids all nodded their heads and agreed, giving me the signal to continue. "And he's certainly made friends with plenty of other teachers at the school and probably some parents as well."

"And?" Rhonda prodded as I sighed and went on.

"And that means that maybe they'd be willing to help Mr. Simmons out too. If we could all get together, kids, teachers and parents, I'm sure we could help refurnish the house before they move back in." I smiled wide at the idea of it all. "Imagine _your_ house burnt down and you thought you'd lost everything but then came home to fully furnished house all from your friends' hard work? It won't be easy," I said, "but that doesn't mean we can't do it."

"Garsh Arnold," Stinky said while reaching up to scratch his head. "You really think that plan of yours is gonna work?"

I reached out to put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "I know it will. But we have to work together to do it." I turned to face the rest of the crowd. "I know it's a lot to ask of you guys to do this, but think about Mr. Simmons. He'd do it for us. He'd go out of his way just to help any of us, and if you all look inside your hearts and realized that, I think you'll help me."

Rhonda looked down from her nail bed and sighed. "I suppose there are a few last season things I could give up for the cause." She said before looking up at me and smiling.

"And I know my parents have an extra couch they've been looking to get rid of for a while now!" Eugene added in with a grin.

"I have some cool collages of places all over the world he might be interested in looking at," Nadine added and I nodded my head in her direction as people all over the playground continued to chime in.

"What about some books and bookshelf?" Phoebe asked with a smile. "I'm positive that Mr. Simmons likes to read and I'm sure he'd appreciate some good literature to read in his off time." She shrugged her shoulders. "I have far too many books anyway that I wouldn't mind parting with."

Gerald eyed Phoebe for a moment before adding in himself, "Jamie-O left a lot of stuff behind when he moved out, so I'm sure I could swipe a few things from his old room to add to the cause," he said and Phoebe smiled in his direction at his sudden generosity.

"Hey Arnold," Sid asked over the crowd with Stinky and Harold beside him. "Stinky, Harold and I thought we could put together some money from Stinky's Yahoo commercials and our piggy banks and start a collection. It'd be so wicked awesome to help put together a charity or something."

"Yeah, yeah," Harold added, "Like a gohelpme page!"

"Ooooh," Rhonda said while pointing towards him, "I hear those are ALL the rage."

I clapped my hands, overjoyed that the class was so willing to part with their less-used things all for Mr. Simmons. "That's a great start," I said with a smile, "But we need more than all of that to furnish his house," I said as everyone nodded in agreement; their thinking caps definitely on. "What we need is even _more_ than that. It's his whole house we're trying to fix up, which is where the PTA meeting comes in."

"When is that? I'm just ever so sure that I'd love to come with and help pitch your idea, Arnold. It's just so sweet of you to go out of your way to think of an idea to help our teacher." Lila said with a small smile and I nodded my head as Helga glared in her direction.

"I'm glad you asked," I said while ignoring Helga's intense glare at Lila, "The meeting is this Thursday right after school in the gymnasium. There will be at least twenty people there, and if we could get all of them to help, I'd say we could get this done in no time."

A chorus of 'yeah!'s erupted from the crowd and I grinned while looking back at Gerald who gave me a thumbs up.

It looked like our plan was officially in action. I'd done it, I'd convinced our class to go out of our way to help Mr. Simmons.

I just hoped we could convince the PTA board with as much ease as I'd done here on the playground.

* * *

 _ **Things are getting heated up here so please PLEASE leave a review after you've read and let me know what you think! shoutout again to Spec who, without this amazing idea, this story could never have been.**_

 _ **Please review and let us know what you think! I'm dying to hear what you think will go down next!**_

 _ **-Polka & Spec**_


	6. Chapter 6

The days leading up to the big PTA meeting were full with purging things we no longer needed for the cause. And while we would have stored all our items at the boarding house, we all figured our best bet was to store them all at Rhonda's enormouse house, since she had plenty of room compared to all of us.

Even though she wasn't all that thrilled about the idea of it.

" _But why does all this clutter have to go to MY house? It is NOT tres chic to be a hoarder, Arnold," She whined and I rolled my eyes while setting my hands on my hips._

" _You're not becoming a hoarder, Rhonda," I explained carefully, "You're simply holding a few things for a while for our cause."_

 _Rhonda scoffed and crossed her arms tightly across her chest. "I thought my giving up those disgusting old lamps and that hideous chandelier was doing my part. NOT using my home as a storage unit."_

 _I sighed and set a hand on her shoulder. "Please Rhonda," I said as sweetly as I could possible manage. "You'd be really doing us a favor to hold this stuff until Mr. Simmons' house until it is ready. We have nowhere else to put these things and you have the most space out of all of us combined."_

 _She glanced around the lobby of her home which we were standing in and sniffled "I suppose I DO have the most grandeur and spacious house..."_

 _I smiled and pat her shoulder. "That's the spirit, Rhonda! Thank you!" To which I reached out and offered her a hug which she was quick to diffuse._

" _Uh uh uh," she said with a hand held out in front of her, "Let's not touch the merchandise, shall we?"_

But neither me or Rhonda could have predicted just how many items we had gathered and especially not from a bunch of 10 year old kids.

So far, we had collected the lamps and chandelier from Rhonda, a couch and old television set from Eugene's family, a bookcase and a various selection of books from Phoebe, Posters and framed pictures from around the world thanks to Nadine. And then there was what Gerald had salvaged from Jamie-O's old room... a weight-lifting set (which I wasn't sure they would use all that much, but then again, it's the thought that counts), a boombox, and some pillows. Next was Lila who donated a set of vases and fake flowers along with some plates and a hand-woven basket she said was her mother's and then there was Sheena who gave some of her collection of playbills from shows she'd been to which she'd put in a big frame that she said she knew Mr. Simmons would appreciate in his living room, but we would get to where things went later. As for Sid, Stinky and Harold, they were determined to gather money from as many people as possible in addition to the funds they'd gathered from their piggy banks and Stinky's Hollywood fund in hopes that whatever money they collected would help Mr. Simmons (and Peter which they didn't know quite yet, but I was hoping to get to that later).

Even Helga got into the spirit of things; bringing in the most stuff out of everybody: Plates, cups, a few pieces of silverware, a table, foldout chairs and a blender- it was as if she'd just raided her own kitchen without telling her parents all just to give to Mr. Simmons' cause. It was... really sweet of her, really.

As for me, I'd donated, with permission of course, one of Grandma's aprons for Mr. Simmons since he'd lost his own in the fire and he likes to wear one while doing dishes and other cleaning and also the wok that Peter uses while cooking his famous stirfry that Mr. Hyunh absolutely adores and last but not least, a framed picture of all of the boarders and I so that they wouldn't forget they'd always have a home with us if ever need be.

I couldn't believe how much a dent we'd made in our project, but we were on a great track so far. Of course, still nowhere near where we needed to be to furnish an entire household, but in the right direction for sure. Thankfully, the house wouldn't be ready for another week or two which gave us plenty of time to fill it with all of our newfound goodies and the ones we would hopefully get after the big PTA meeting we were planning to crash.

That is, if the PTA meeting went well like I hoped it would.

Part of me knew it would. Part of me really saw the positive light of the mission and knew that it could touch others and inspire them to help us achieve our goal of helping Mr. Simmons and Peter in their time of serious need.

But then there was this _other_ part of me; the part of me that whispered in my ear and told me that it could all blow up in my face. What if the PTA meeting blew us off? What if they laughed in our faces because we _were_ just 10 year olds pitching a big idea that might just be bigger than our own heads? What if the only things we were able to gather were that which we already had? The few miscellaneous items that a bunch of 10 year olds had given up? I mean, sure, we had a few good things and sure, Mr. Simmons would probably appreciate anything that we had to offer, but we were still missing so many of the essentials- a bed, sheets for the bed, a coffee table, more kitchen appliances, and the list just went on and on.

How could we do this? How could a few students pull of a stunt as big as I was imagining? Even if Peter and Mr. Simmons were grateful for what we had given them, it still wasn't enough for me for some reason. I wanted to go above and beyond expectations and really wow the teacher who had shown me how to never give up and that there truly are special things and people in the world. I wanted to give back in more than just a helpful way, I wanted to show him a real 'thank you' and one like he'd never experienced before- one that he genuinely deserved.

I mean, he _deserved_ that. They _both_ deserved that. Especially after all they'd done for the boarding house.

Which is why they were the second group of people I had pitched my idea to after the other kids in class.

" _So if there's anything, anything at all you don't use or you'd like to give them, I think they'd really appreciate it."_

" _Well Shortman," Grandpa said, "I think you've got a swell idea on your hands. A big one, but hey! That's never stopped you before." He reached a shaky hand out to set on my shoulder. "You're making your parents very proud, Arnold."_

" _Rah, Rah!" Grandma cheered from behind him with her arms high in the air and I smiled._

" _Thanks guys, but I haven't done much of anything yet. We're planning to crash the PTA meeting this Thursday and ask for some additional help."_

" _Well," Grandpa said while stroking his chin in deep thought, "It IS a parent teacher thingy-ma-bob... you want us to tag-a-long with you and your little friends?"_

 _I looked around the living room at the smiling faces of the boarders as my own smile spread across my face. "I'd, well, that'd be wonderful."_

" _Yes!" Mr. Hyunh exclaimed. "Help Robert and Peter, yes!"_

" _What will you ask the board exactly?" Suzie asked while the other boarders nodded their heads and I took a deep breath._

" _Well," I started, "I thought if we all stand before the board and pleaded our case showing true empathy while explaining just why this is so important to us, the other parents and teachers there would want to join in on the cause."_

" _Huh," Ernie mused and I looked over to Grandpa who was shaking his head._

" _I don't know, Shortman," he said, "I say you gather up us and all your friends, see, and we march on up those steps of PS- what was it again?"_

 _I looked at him blankly and responded. "PS118."_

 _Without skipping a beat he continued, this time swinging his arms at his sides for dramatic effect. "And you march on up those steps of PS118 to the meeting and storm through the doors and say 'We are Robert's class, hear us roar! Give us furniture, or give us death!'"_

 _I looked at him with a slightly tired expression. "Grandpa..."_

" _Yeah, you're right. It's not_ nearly _dramatic enough. Pookie, you wanna lend me a hand here?"_

 _I watched as Grandma rushed to Grandpa's side and they began marching in unison as if to the beat of a drum I couldn't hear._

 _Grandpa then said as they marched, "So there you are- you and all your little friends and all of us- and you're marching up the steps with, with, oh! A flag! Pookie, do we have a flag?"_

 _I stood up and waved my arms about which effectively cut them off. "Stop! Stop, stop, stop!" I hollered. "This is serious you guys! Don't you see?"_

 _The boarders all exchanged looks with one another before returning to at last look at me where I stood in front of them._

" _These people have lost everything. These people need our help and these people are our_ friends _." I stated. "Mr. Simmons and Peter... They've become our family and families support each other. This is something big that we can do for the two of them and if we can do it, they'll be so grateful. So please, will you find it in your hearts to help me make this happen?" I looked around the room being sure to make eye contact with each person. "For me?" I set my eyes on Grandpa's and said pleadingly. "For them?"_

Thankfully, the boarders took to my speech and all retreated to their rooms in search of things they could donate for Mr. Simmons and Peter. Ernie decided to part with a few of his favorite Dino Spumoni records. Mr. Hyunh gave up a step stool, a recliner, and a book on Vietnam that he'd taken with him from the country. Suzie donated a few cookbooks and a sewing kit. Oskar gave 100 dollars cash only to be discovered as Ernie's which he decided was for a good cause and let him give that away anyway. As for Grandma and Grandpa, they said I could take anything from the storage closet that I saw fit which was quite a few things and I was grateful to them for their generosity.

In addition to all their donations, they all also agreed to accompany the gang and I to the PTA meeting in hopes that we can make a real impact on those on the board with both children and adults storming the meeting.

And while I knew we could, deep in my heart of hearts, it was when I looked at Mr. Simmons and Peter that I felt just the smallest twinge of fear that my plan wouldn't work... and I couldn't have that.

Looking at Mr. Simmons and Peter, I just KNEW this had to work. And if it didn't? Well, I just didn't know what I'd do.

* * *

The next day, Saturday, I woke up with an idea on my brain and I just knew that Gerald had to help me with my latest plan. I jumped out of bed and rushed to my phone to dial his number.

"Hello?" He answered, sounding groggy and I knew that I'd woken him up.

"Hey, Gerald, I have an idea."

This seemed to wake him up a bit as his voice sounded more alert. "Oh man, Arnold, who are you gonna save now, huh? Kalamazoo?"

I chuckled and shook my head though he couldn't see. "No, Gerald, this has to do with Simmons and Peter," I said while taking a seat on my couch as I held my phone to my head. "I think I thought of another person who'd be willing to donate to our cause."

"Really now? And who might that be?"

I took a breath and exhaled before I revealed my idea. "Pearl Simmons."

A boisterous laugh evoked over the phone and I held the receiver away from my ear as Gerald let out his laughter. "Pearl Simmons?" He said through his chortling. "Pearl Simmons? As in Mr. Simmons' Mom? The woman he was staying with? The woman who seemed more than thrilled to get him out of his house and the woman YOU said both of them seemed to dislike for the way she treats them? Really Arnold?" He laughed again. "You really ARE dense."

"Gerald," I said while putting a hand on my head, "I'm being serious, here."

"I know, man, but what makes you think she'd donate ANYTHING to help them out, huh?"

I thought back to the dream I had last night. The way it felt so real and so raw that it hurt my soul. I shook my head to return back to reality. "I had this dream last night..."

"Oh brother," He said and I frowned.

"Seriously, Gerald, just give me a chance here, okay?"

He paused for a moment before calming himself. "Alright, alright. Go ahead."

I took another breath and prepared myself to recollect my dream for him. "I dreamed of my parents. I dreamed that they were here again, back from their mission work. I asked them if they loved me no matter what happened and of course, they said yes."

"Well duh, they're you're parents, man." He said and I agreed.

"Right, but there's more." I said before continuing. "Then, I asked them if anything happened to me, would they help me, no matter the circumstances and they looked at each other and shared this look I can't explain. They nodded their heads and said yes that they would help me no matter what because that's what parents do. No matter how angry they are at their children or how angry they are at themselves, they help their children."

"Okay..." he said as his voice trailed off. "So what does your dream have to do with Pearl Simmons?"

"Well, it got me thinking," I said, "It made me think that no matter how mean she may seem, it doesn't mean that she wouldn't want to help her son, don't you think?"

Gerald thought about this for a moment. "I guess so. I mean, I'm not so sure on your method here, but I guess so."

"It's worth a shot, don't you think?"

"So what are you proposing exactly?" He asked at last and I adjusted on the couch and smiled.

"I'm proposing that we get up, meet at my place, and head over to Pearl's house and ask her to help her son. See what she says. The worst that could happen is she says no."

Gerald sighed but agreed. "Alright, man. I'll give it a shot. Gimme 20. I'll have my mom drop me off on her way to work."

"Perfect. I'll see you then."

I hung up the phone and smiled to myself.

Pearl had to have a heart at least big enough to help her son in his time of need... right?

* * *

Gerald I stood outside the door of Pearl Simmons' house side by side. I couldn't believe we were doing this, but it was worth a shot to do it. I knew my dream was telling me that for a reason and my parents had never steered me in the wrong direction before, even if it was just a dream. I looked over to Gerald who looked nervous.

"You okay?" I asked and he shrugged.

"Pearl gives me the creeps." he said with a slight shiver and I rolled my eyes.

"You're being absurd," I said and he turned to look at me with a glare.

"What? You've told me enough about her for ME to know that she isn't a kind old lady, THAT'S for sure." He retorted and I sighed.

"Gerald... just give this a chance, okay?" I pleaded and he crossed his arms.

"I'm here, aren't I?" he said before gesturing towards the doorbell. "Go ahead, man. Let's get this over with."

I reached out to ring the doorbell and heard the ding-dong resonate through the house as a loud, booming voice rang out to holler, "I'm coming!" before the door swung open to reveal Pearl Simmons with a small scowl on her face.

"Whatever you're selling, I'm not interested," she said before attempting to close the door and I quickly spoke up in an effort to try and get her to stay with us for just a moment.

"We aren't selling anything Ms. Simmons, we just want to talk to you for a second," I said and her eyes narrowed, though she kept the door open and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Well you clearly know who I am. What do you want?" She asked and I looked to Gerald who encouraged me onward and I cleared my throat before starting with the speech I'd gone over and over in my head all day.

"As you know, Mr. Simmons and his roommate-"

"Oh so that's what he's calling it these days?" she retorted and I ignored her comment and Gerald's confusion and pressed on with a clearing of my throat.

"They uh, their place has burnt down. And his students and the people he is living with now are going around trying to collect a few items to try and refurnish their place because their insurance won't cover anything lost in the fire. We're here to see if there isn't anything you'd be willing to part with that you would donate to the cause."

Pearl blinked her eyes and shook her head. "I've got nothing. Sorry, kid." She said before trying to close the door and I reached out to stop her.

"Please, he's your son. You can't tell me there isn't anything you have that wouldn't bring him comfort in his time of need. You're his mother. The only one he has. You have to have something." I pleaded, but she simply shook her head.

"Like I said, kid, I've got nothing. Sorry you wasted your time."

I looked over to Gerald who was frowning and at last spoke up from where he stood. "Listen lady," he said firmly. "Mr. Simmons is a great guy. I don't know where he gets it from, but he's the best teacher around this town. Now, you and I BOTH know there is SOMETHING in that house of yours, big or small, that you have that you KNOW he would like or he could use in his house when it's fixed up. All YOU have to do, is give it to us and he'll be sure to get it. That's the deal here."

The woman looked between the two of us and sighed before pursing her lips. "Wait here," she said before slamming the door in our face; leaving us to ourselves on her stoop.

"What is happening?" I whispered to Gerald and he shrugged his shoulders.

"I have no idea, man, but I think she's giving us something," he said and moments later, the door opened to show Pearl holding a large book of sorts.

"Here," she said while giving me the book which appeared to be a photo album now that I had a closer look at it. "It's a bunch of photos of Robert as a kid with me and his father. He's always wanted it and now he can have it. Will you two leave me alone now?"

Gerald and I smiled at each other and nodded our heads. "Yes, thank-" but before I could get the 'you' out, the door slammed shut again and we were once again left on her stoop, but this time with the album that I couldn't wait to give to Mr. Simmons.

"Well, Arnold," Gerald said as we walked down her stoop and headed back towards the bus stop, "You did it, man. She gave us something for Mr. Simmons. That crazy dream of yours was RIGHT."

I smiled as I looked down at the album I held in my hands and nodded my head. "I know. I can't believe it."

After a few minutes of silence as we walked, Gerald quietly said, "I think YOU should be the one to give that to Mr. Simmons."

I turned to look at him with a curious gaze. "Why's that?"

"Well, this whole thing WAS your idea," he said, "and I think it's only fair that you be the one to give him that. I think he'd really appreciate it the most being that it's a family heirloom or whatever."

I nodded my head as I stared down at the album, now suddenly filled with hope.

My heart was full of it, that hope. The hope that we could do this crazy idea I was once so unsure of. But now, with the album in my hands and the encounter with Pearl, I felt like I could do anything. Like I was on top of the world.

I smiled to Gerald. "Sure, Gerald. I'd love to."

And with that, we made it to the bus stop just in time to board and make our way back home to spend the rest of our Saturday planning for the upcoming PTA meeting now just a few days away.

* * *

The rest of the week flew by as we all waited in anticipation for the PTA meeting. We all met a few times at Mighty Pete to go over the few details we had and everyone decided that I should be the one to give the speech to the board for our cause. I was fine with it really, I mean, it was my idea and all and nobody else felt comfortable talking in front of all the parents and teachers. The whole idea didn't bother me much, I was just nervous about their answer.

Days flew by and suddenly we were at Thursday, the day of the meeting.

I called everyone together for one final meeting at Gerald Field just for a quick pep talk before we entered unknown territory that was the PTA meeting in the gymnasium.

"Alright everybody," I hollered over the crowd of young and old standing about the open field. They quieted immediately signaling for me to continue. "We have a goal to achieve here today," I began as Gerald gestured for me to stand up on the bench and I did so shakily as eyes followed me.

"Today, we will march into the PTA meeting with our goal in mind and hope in our hearts: the hope that we; small but big, young and old, can make a difference in two people's lives."

"Two?" Curly called out.

"Yeah, I thought we were just this for Mr. Simmons..." Harold whined and I held up a hand.

"While we are doing this for our dear teacher Mr. Simmons, we are also doing this for someone the boarders and I have become close to and begun to know well, his uh... his roommate, Peter Perez."

Mindless chatter outbroke amongst the group as people began to question our motives all thanks to the new addition to our cause. I stared around in shock as they fought among each other and I glanced over to Gerald for help as he gestured I do something.

Frazzled, I took a deep breath. "Hey!" I exclaimed in sudden frustration. "Hey! Listen to yourselves!" I yelled as everyone grew quiet at my sudden outburst. "This is a _person_ we are talking about! And sure... _you_ might not know him very well, but he's... to Mr. Simmons..." my mouth grew dry as I tried to explain to my classmates just what peter meant to Mr. Simmons in terms that they would understand.

Everyone leaned in towards me as if hanging on my every word and what I would say next. I swallowed hard before opening my mouth again. "Peter is Mr. Simmons' best friend. And I know we all have a best friend or two. Wouldn't you want someone to help them too in your shared time of need? You didn't know my parents and you helped me find them."

Sid frowned from where he stood in the crowd. "That was different though Arnold-"

"How? Because it was for me?" I asked while cutting him off and shutting him up effectively. "Well this is for Mr. Simmons so how is it any different? Huh? How?"

I looked at each individual person in the small crowd, making eye contact with every person for a small moment. I let it settle with them for a while before a soft and unexpected voice spoke up for me in my defense.

"Arnold's right. This is for Mr. Simmons and I'm sure he'd want us to help his roommate too," Helga said while stepping through the group to make her way to the front where I was standing. Suddenly, her tone changed to her usual authoritative, booming voice as she raised a fist in the air and said, "So whattya buffoons say we storm that PTA meeting and get some support! For Mr. Simmons!"

I grinned at Helga as she smiled warmly in my direction; the rest of the group beaming at each other and in turn raising their own fists in the air and repeating after Helga, "For Mr. Simmons!"

* * *

Helga, Gerald and I led the way up the steps to PS118 with a crew of kids and adults following closely behind. We busted through the doors, determined as ever with our mission clearly in mind, and made our way down the halls in pursuit of the gymnasium where we knew the meeting was to take place.

"You ready to do this, man?" Gerald asked as we walked side by side growing closer to our destination with each step.

I nodded my head solemnly. "Ready as I'm ever gonna be."

"Mm mm MM," he hummed, "I've said it once and I'll say it again, you are one bold kid, Arnold."

I smiled as we approached the gymnasium doors. "I sure am, Gerald."

"Hey Arnold?" Helga said from the other side of me and I turned to look at her.

"Yes Helga?"

We paused at the front of the doors, ready to bust our way through and into the meeting.

"I just wanna say I think, I mean it's really, YOU'RE really, well," she shook her head, her words escaping her before regrouping and giving me a sly smile. "What I MEAN to say is..." she reached out and grabbed my shoulder only to squeeze it while she smiled in my direction. "let's do this thing."

And with that, as a herd of determined people with a cause behind us, we burst through the gymnasium doors ready to plead our well thought out case to our unknowing participants of our small revolution.

* * *

 _ **Thanks so much for sticking with this story thus far. I really appreciate each and every review and so does Spec. We're having such a good time writing this fic and we really hope you are enjoying it. if you are, and if you read this chapter, please leave us a review letting us know what you think. How do you think the PTA meeting will go? What do you think will happen next? How do you think everyone will react to Arnold's plan? Let us know in the review!**_

 _ **-Polka & Spec**_


	7. Chapter 7

A sea of eyes greeted us as we walked into the gymnasium to face those on the PTA board. Their eyes pierced through us where we stood I could feel my face flush as I stood frozen in front of the rest of our small group. There must have been at least 20 people sitting in a circle in front of us, just staring at the mish mash of people before them, young and old, standing like statues before them awaiting a response.

We watched on for a moment, each group staring at the other simultaneously, until one person- the leader of the group maybe –stood up with a clipboard in hand and approached those of us standing in the doorway.

"May I help you? There is a meeting in progress here right now," they said and a few people behind me murmured words I couldn't understand though we all remained in place.

We stood in silence still, until Gerald nudged me hard in the ribs with his elbow reminding me that I was to do the talking and I cleared my throat and took a deep breath to prepare myself for the final battle- the ultimate goal that I'd be preparing for for what felt like years.

"Uh," I started shakily, "We, uh, we are the friends and students of Mr. Robert Simmons," I said, my confidence building with each word that I spoke. "And we are here today to propose something to those of you on the PTA board, if you don't mind."

The woman standing before us glanced down at her clipboard before holding it tightly to her her chest and looking at us sympathetically. "I see," she said before chewing on her lip and then saying, "Well, as I'm sure you understand, these meetings aren't really the kind of thing you can just disrupt and then propose things to."

I glanced over to Helga and Gerald before returning my gaze to the lady in front of us. "I understand, and I apologize for our disruption to your meeting, but you see, our cause is of great importance and we'd really appreciate it if you'd let us speak before you and hear what we have to say. It would mean a lot."

She turned around to look at the people waiting behind her before returning to look back at us with an unsure expression. "I'm not sure if I can allow that..."

Helga piped in, her voice slightly angry as she spoke. "Oh c'mon lady, can't you just give us and this football-head a chance to speak, here?"

Gerald then added in, "Yeah, I mean we came ALL this way JUST to speak to all of you and YOU can't even hear us out?"

I held my hands out to calm them down before saying myself, "Please ma'am, it will only take a few minutes, I promise."

The woman bit her lip again, clearly uncertain as to whether she should allow us to speak in front of the board but sighed and dropped her clipboard to her side. "Alright. But I'll only give you five minutes. We have a lot to cover here today."

A silent victory erupted throughout our group- the first battle was won –but we had so far yet to go. We made our way to the circle of staring adults waiting to hear what it was we'd crashed their meeting for. Carefully, we entered their circle, all of us filling it up and standing before them in a round so they could see just how many people were behind our cause. The people scooted their chairs out to give us more room and I took a deep breath knowing this was my chance, my only and last chance to get what we really needed to achieve our goal of furnishing Mr. Simmons' house. This was it- the moment I'd been waiting for... the final battle.

The woman who'd addressed us took her seat and set her clipboard on her lap as she crossed her legs. "Alright," she said calmly, "What is it you'd like to say to us today?"

"This is it, man," Gerald whispered to me, "You've GOT this."

I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with nervous air and allowed the speech I'd been practicing to come out of my mouth with confidence and authority so they knew I meant business. This was my time to shine and to show that our cause was one worth listening to- one worth intruding on their meeting to present to them.

"Today, I'm here, _we're_ here to talk to you about Mr. Robert Simmons, a teacher who works at no other than PS118," I began, "Many of us are students of his, and we would like for you to hear us out on a cause that is not only noble, but important- it's one of giving."

Anxiously, I began to walk around the round, my hands behind my back as I spoke and looked at each individual in the outer circle. "Mr. Simmons is one of the best teachers around, if not _the_ best. He's been named Citywide Teacher of the Year twice, both this year and last, which only goes to prove my point that he is, without a doubt, a great influence of young minds- but not only that... old minds as well."

I gestured behind myself to the adults of the group; the boarders. "Behind me are also a group of adults, some friends of Mr. Simmons. He too has helped these people grow in unimaginable ways. You see, everyone that Mr. Simmons meets, he touches in a way that changes them forever. His kindness and understanding nature allows people to open up and grow passed their expectations and passed the people they once were- a trait that most people do not have."

One man in the group spoke up, raising a finger in the air to draw my attention. "It's without a doubt that Mr. Simmons is a great teacher, I work with him as faculty, but what does that have to do with why you're here today?" he asked and I smiled in his direction.

"I'm glad you asked," I said while reaching around to clasp my hands in front of me. "As I'm sure most of you know, Mr. Simmons has gone through a great tragedy as of late. His house has burnt down in a sad accident that the city is still unsure of the cause." I looked down at my hands and shook my head. "He's been absolutely crushed by this, and yet, has pushed through and continued to teach like a good teacher would. He's kept his positive attitude despite the circumstances and that is to be commended."

"And just how do you intend to do that?" Another voice asked and I looked up to finish my speech.

 _Here we go,_ I thought to myself before opening my mouth and finishing what I started.

"All of us here, adults and children alike, friends and students together, propose that we help Mr. Simmons in his time of need. You see, while the city is rebuilding his home, his insurance will not be compensating him for anything that he has lost in the fire, meaning that he will go home to an empty house with nothing to call his own-"

"And you know this how?" The leader of the group asked, concerned.

Grandpa spoke up, "Oh, he lives with me right now at the Sunset Arms Boarding House," he said and the woman nodded her head as I continued.

"So we are here today to ask for help. Those of us here have donated many things for our cause, things that he might enjoy as well as things that he'll need to refurnish his home but we are only a few people and we don't have nearly enough items to furnish his entire home. What we're here today for is to ask you, as coworkers and friends to Robert Simmons, will you, can you, help us in our quest to refurnish his home in any way possible? Can you reach down in the bottom of your heart and find a way to help us do the impossible and help a person so giving and deserving of this fresh start?"

I looked around at the circle of people, most of them with thoughtful expressions on their faces as they internalized all that I'd said to them. The anticipation was killing me as we waited for someone, anyone to speak after my speech and for a moment, I knew I'd blown it. But after a minute of silence, one person stood up from the group, the same man who claimed to be one of his coworkers.

"As I said, I'm a coworker of Robert's. I've worked with him since he first transferred here and he really is a great guy. He usually comes to all of these meetings so I speak for all of us when I say we've all become quite close to him and would consider him a friend." He said while looking around at the nodding group of parents and teachers. "I've also seen the impression he makes on his kids and he without a doubt is a great teacher. I look at all of you, and I see kids willing to put everything out there to help their teacher, something most students wouldn't even think of doing, especially at your age," he said with a slightly sad expression. "My family owns the furniture warehouse down on Elm Street and I'm sure that there is something I could do to help you all get the remaining items you need if you give me a list. They donate to charities all the time and I wouldn't be surprised if they donated to you and your cause."

A big smile beamed across my face as everyone chatted among themselves at the big win we'd just hit with this mysterious coworker of Mr. Simmons. Soon, another person stood up, a woman, and she brushed her hair away from her shoulders before she began to speak.

"I too am a friend of Mr. Simmons. He tutored my son a while back and I could see such a noticeable difference in him just from his few sessions. His grades skyrocketed and he became a nicer person just from his few encounters with him. He used to be such a shy kid but just working with Mr. Simmons made him open up more and I am grateful to him for that. I'll help you with your cause. I have plenty that I don't need."

It wasn't long before almost everyone in the PTA board stood up, offering anything they could to our cause, big and small. I was astounded by the support we were getting but at the same time not surprised. Mr. Simmons is such a great guy and has touched so many people that it was only a matter of time the world gave back to him and the services he has given to the world itself. He's changed so many people and influenced so many others that it was about time he got something out of it, especially in his time of need.

Once people were done offering what they could, the leader of the group stood up, clipboard in hand. "Thank you for bringing this to our attention. I'll admit, I was a bit unsure as to what we were getting ourselves into by letting you speak today, but I believe that your cause is one of great importance. It isn't often that we give back to those who need it and there is a great lesson to be learned from giving to those in need, something I'm sure Mr. Simmons would love to teach though that lesson is clearly learned from your cause. I too will give what I can to you." She approached me then, offering her clipboard and a fresh sheet of paper. "Why don't you write down the important things you still need and we will all see if we can't help you gather them up. When did you say the building would be completed?"

"Within the next week or so." I replied and she nodded her head.

"Alright, there is a lot of work to be done then. Go ahead and write down what you need and I'll be sure to make copies and hand them out to those of us who are willing to donate, especially you Mr. Gilly as your family owns Furniture Warehouse."

He smiled and nodded his head as I began scrawling down just what it was we still needed to complete our mission.

Inside, I was screaming. I couldn't believe we had done it. We'd conquered the PTA board and with flying colors. Never in a million years would I have imagined that we'd get the support we got today and especially the jackpot of Furniture Warehouse. We'd done it, we'd actually done it. The final battle had been won.

* * *

Everything was in place within the week. Thanks to Furniture Warehouse and the other donations from the PTA board, we had collected nearly everything we needed to furnish the house and I was absolutely thrilled. I never expected so many things would be able to work out as perfectly as they had, but they did, and we were ready to begin the process of moving everything in.

As for the building, it was set to be finished by next week. The next step was just to get everything we had _into_ the house which would be the hardest part. Thankfully, I'd talked to the city planners ahead of time and they said that we could move in things a couple of days early. The boarders, Mr. Gilly from the PTA group and all of the gang offered their services to help move things in and we were set to begin our efforts on Wednesday, all in time for Mr. Simmons and Peter to move back in on Friday. It would be a bit of a squeeze but we'd already faced the hardest part so the rest would be a cinch.

"Alright everybody," I addressed the group of people as we stood out front the nearly finished house, "I just want to thank you all again for coming together and offering to help move all of this stuff in, and a special thank you to Mr. Gilly who has lent us the moving truck from Furniture Warehouse so we can easily access what we've collected," I started clapping as everyone joined in and he bowed his head slightly to acknowledge the applause.

"Now, I've separated us all into groups based on what you all asked to be a part of. Rhonda, and Sheena, you will be in charge of decorations in the home. Lila and Grandma, you'll take the kitchen. Sid and Stinky, you're in charge of the living room. Harold and... Eugene?" I squinted at my paper and he nodded his head from afar.

"Yep!" He called out and I looked out at him.

"Are you sure you want to be moving things with Harold, Eugene? We could squeeze you into decorating with Rhonda and Sheena if you would prefer..." I offered but he shook his head.

"No. I've been trying to work on my upper body strength so I can do one pull-up for the physical challenge in gym class," he said and I shrugged my shoulders.

"Alright then," I said before continuing, "Harold, Eugene and Gerald will be in charge of carrying furniture into the house, Curly and Phoebe, you'll take the bedrooms, Nadine, Suzie and Mr. Hyunh will be working on restoring the garden out front, Oskar will help Grandpa with the bathroom-"

"The bathroom?" Oskar whined. "Why do I have to work with the old man in the bathroom?"

"Hey!" Grandpa exclaimed while pushing his chest out. "Who are you calling old?"

"Guys, please, it's just how the list worked out, okay?" I said trying to calm them down. "We all have to work together if we are going to get this done so we have to put on our work boots and get this thing done."

"Hey, football-head," Helga called out from the crowd and I looked over to where she was standing. "What about me? You... you forgot me," she said softly and I noted her sad expression but offered her a smile.

"You'll be working side by side with me to make sure that everything runs smoothly." I said and her eyes lit up at my instruction while I offered her a slight wink which sent her falling backwards slightly before she picked herself up rather rapidly and shook her head a bit.

"Now," I said, directing the group once more, "we all have our assignments, so let's get this project going and give Mr. Simmons and Peter a great house!"

And with that, the crowd dispersed to their assigned positions. First, we unloaded all of the knick knacks, art, posters, plates and other such small things so people could start putting those things into place while Eugene, Harold and Gerald moved everything in around them. Suzie, Nadine and Mr. Hyunh began immediately on the garden which looked a mess but they were quick to know what to do in fixing it up. Helga found me immediately and smiled at me from my side.

"So Hair Boy, we've gotten this far, eh?" She said and I smiled back at her and nodded.

"That we have."

"You proud of what you've done? Because let's be honest, this WAS all you." She said and I shrugged my shoulders.

"Well, we aren't done yet, now are we?" I said with a sly smile before gesturing for her to come with me. "C'mon. Let's head inside and oversee things. You and me." I reached out for her hand and pulled her along after me as we ran inside to take a look at just how things were playing out on the inside.

Once inside, it was clear that everyone was pretty focused on their tasks. Oskar and Grandpa were yelling at each other from inside the bathroom, but were still able to focus on hanging the curtain rod. Lila and Grandma, however, were getting along swimmingly in the kitchen, putting away utensils and plates and laughing while setting flowers inside the vases Lila had donated and setting up a few other pieces to make it feel more like home. I glanced around to see Rhonda arguing with Sheena about how a picture was askew on the wall and watched as Sid and Stinky rolled out a rug on the floor of the living room and then began setting up the TV stand in the corner of the room.

All was doing fine until the furniture began to be moved into place.

"ALRIGHT FOLKS," Helga ordered while waving her arms like a stewardess inward as the boys struggled with the couch they were holding, "KEEP IT MOVING ONE FOOT IN FRONT OF THE OTHER, THAT'S RIGHT, C'MON PINK BOY TAKE A BREATH ALREADY WE GOT A LOT OF FURNITURE TO MOVE TODAY DON'T CRAP OUT ON ME NOW!" She hollered as Harold frowned, sweat lining his brow.

"I'm... going as... fast as... as I can... Helga..." he said in between huffs of breath as the three of them tried to pivot the couch inside the house, but struggled to do so.

"PIVOT FOR CRIPES SAKE! PIVOT!" Helga screamed and Gerald piped up from the side of the couch.

"We can't really PIVOT, Helga, we're just trying to get into the freakin' door!" He exclaimed and she sighed while driving her face into the palm of her hand.

"It isn't that HARD ya dopes, just CONCENTRATE already!" She insisted which is when Harold's hands slipped and he dropped his side directly on his foot.

"Ahh! My toe!" He yelped while quickly hoisting the couch up high to try and avoid it from happening again. This caused Gerald to lose his grip and the entire couch went diagonal as Eugene at the back end lost his grip entirely and slipped while still on the stoop and the couch landed directly on his leg; his scream one to last the ages.

I rushed to his side to help lift the couch off of him and move it away from where he was laying. "Eugene! Eugene!" I yelled while he held gently onto his clearly broken leg and took deep breaths.

"I'm... I'm okay," He said softly and I sighed while kneeling beside him.

I turned around to holler inside to everyone. "Could someone please call an ambulance for Eugene?" I asked before turning back around to Eugene and gently touching his shoulder. "You're gonna be alright, okay Eugene? We'll get you some help."

He smiled a warm smile through tired eyes. "Thanks, Arnold. You're a real pal."

Once the ambulance arrived to take a still smiling Eugene away from the house and to the hospital, Mr. Gilly offered to help Gerald and Harold finish moving in the rest of the furniture, which seemed to work well.

The next issue, however, came from the garden, where we heard a chorus of 'ew's and Helga and I rushed to discover just what was happening. There, we found Mr. Hyunh, and Suzie stepped far away from Nadine who was digging deep into the Earth in search of something only we could assume as bugs.

"What's going on here guys? The garden still needs a lot of work..." I said and Mr. Hyunh shook his head.

"I cannot work...with her..." he said, disjointedly as he usually talked. "She play with...the bugs... is creepy! She give me the creepies!"

I shook my head while reaching up to rub at the bridge of my nose, Helga taking over in a kinder way than I had imagined she would.

"Look, Mr. Hyunh, Suzie," she said while looking at each one of them, "Nadine has this thing with bugs. Don't ask me WHY, but she does. Let's try to make it work, okay?" They both nodded and Helga finally addressed Nadine who was still digging into the ground. "And Nadine?" she said.

"Yes?" She answered, elbow deep into the dirt.

"Knock it off with the bug thing. Just for today. Remember what we're doing this for. This isn't for your bug collection, alright?"

Nadine raised a thumbs up from the dirt and smiled. "Got it." She said and the three went back to work on the gardening as I turned to face Helga.

"Helga, that was... amazing." I said and she put her hands on her hips with a satisfied look on her face.

"Why thank you, football-head. I'm a pretty amazing person." She said confidently and I chuckled.

"You sure are," I said before maniacal laughter broke out followed by the sounds of hollering coming from inside the house. Both of us sighed.

"What NOW?" Helga asked, exasperatedly and we both turned around to enter the house and rush up to the bedroom from where Curly's laughter was ensuing.

Curly was jumping on the freshly put-in bed. And he was _not_ stopping. Each jump was higher than the next and I felt agitated that he was doing such a thing on the new furniture that we had just gotten from the warehouse.

"Curly!" I exclaimed as he jumped up and down, "What are you _doing_?"

"Jumping, obviously!" He said and Phoebe shook her head from the corner of the room where she stood.

"I tried to explain to him the detrimental effects this would have on the bed by him doing so, but he simply laughed and continued the act," she said rather crossly and Helga cracked her knuckles from where she stood beside me.

"Get DOWN from there Curly!" She yelled but he merely laughed and continued.

"MAKE ME WOMAN!" He hollered while continuing to laugh and jumping even higher.

"Curly, please," I pleaded, "We don't have time for this right now. There's so much work to be done and we need your cooperation."

"I swear to God, Curly, if you don't get down from there, I WILL make you." Helga threatened and I glanced over to her in mild concern though Curly didn't seem phased.

"I'd like to see you try," he said and with that it only took a grunt and a leap for Helga to tackle him off of the bed and onto the ground to which the group standing in the doorway all 'ooed' and I turned around to face them.

"That's enough, guys, break it up and go back to your sections," I directed while making steps towards them. "Go on, now, let's focus on the task at hand, please!"

Curly and Helga emerged from the side of the bed, Helga wiping off her skirt and Curly adjusting his glasses on his face. "That was exhilarating," he said and Helga raised her fists up to his face.

"You want a little more of that?" She growled and I pointed at her with an authoritative tone in my voice as I spoke.

"He's off the bed, Helga. Let's move on, okay?" I offered and she dropped her fists but first threw a pointer finger into his chest.

"Better not let me catch you doing that again or you'll have a meeting with Betsy and the Five Avengers, you got it?" She said and Curly shrugged his shoulders, completely unphased.

"The bed is broken in, you can keep your fists to yourself," he said calmly and Helga rolled her eyes before turning away and moving back to my side so we could leave him and Phoebe to finishing up the bedroom.

"Man, this place is going crazy," She commented and I shrugged my shoulders.

"We _are_ trying to manage a bunch of kids doing adult work," I said and she sighed, but nodded her head.

"Still, you'd think they could at least ACT more mature than this. Just for one day and for Mr. Simmons." She said and we made it into the main area of the house to overlook everything at once as it happened.

"They're doing the best that they can and that's all that matters. We're already mostly done with moving everything in so the rest shouldn't take much longer. Rhonda seems to have quite the handle on the decorating aspect and Lila and Grandma almost have the kitchen complete. Stinky and Sid seem to be mostly finished with the living room and Oskar and Grandpa finished the bathroom about twenty minutes ago. I'd say we are right on track."

Which we were. It only took a few more hours before everything was moved in and decorated and we were finally allowed to stand back and take a look at the work we'd done.

"It's beautiful. Absolutely tres chic," Rhonda said with a kiss of her fingers.

"I can't believe we actually DID it," Gerald said while wiping his brow.

"It's absolutely astounding," Phoebe commented while moving to Gerald's side and smiling up at him.

"Well done, everybody," I said to the group, "I'm so proud of what we've accomplished today. Mr. Simmons and Peter will not only have a home to come back to, but they will have a HOME to come back to and the difference is everything. I never could have followed through with this crazy idea without your guys' help so I applaud you for all the work you've put in to make this possible."

The group applauded each other, patting each other on the back and smiling to one another though each was tired and ready to go home.

"What now?" Sheena asked and I shrugged my shoulders with a smile.

"Now, we wait until Friday and we greet Mr. Simmons at his new home. You all ready for that?"

A chorus of 'Yes!'s erupted from the crowd and I smiled as Helga slung an arm around me and smiled. "You did it, football-head, you really did it."

"I couldn't have done it without everyone here. Without you." I said and she grinned from ear to ear before releasing me and shrugging.

But I meant every word. Without the help of my classmates and the boarders, there was no way I ever could have pulled this off. It all started out as such a small idea and had become something bigger than I ever could have imagined. We'd done it, we'd actually done it.

Now, all I could hope for was that Mr. Simmons and Peter would like what we'd done. I didn't want what we'd accomplished to be for nothing. Not after all the hard work we'd put in.

This was by far one of the greatest things I'd ever done and I just hoped they would see it as that way too. Now, all that was left to do was wait until Friday for the big reveal. And I couldn't wait.

* * *

 _ **Well folks, we are getting towards the end of this amazing fic, and i just want to say thank you to everyone for all the support you have given to both of us throughout this journey. it's been a blast writing this and i really feel like this is a solid, episodic piece that is a great fanfic. Please be sure to leave a review so i know what you think! How do you think that Mr. Simmons and Peter will like the house? What do you think will happen next? LEave me a review and let me know! I'd love to hear your feedback!**_

 _ **-Polka & Spec**_


	8. Chapter 8

Thursday went by slowly with the anticipation of Friday's big reveal. I watched Mr. Simmons teach his class with my secret, all of our secret that we shared, as we each exchanged various looks throughout the class- looks of excitement as Friday drew near.

We'd planned for a surprise homecoming, all of us gathering once more at the house to surprise Mr. Simmons and Peter with all our hard work. Once Mr. Simmons and Peter left the boarding house, Gerald would meet me there and we'd both get into the packard and rush to beat the pair to their home so we could greet them there. Once we'd greeted them, we'd offer to come with them inside their thought-to-be empty home. There, all the classmates and boarders would be standing inside in various places ready to yell 'Surprise!' and hopefully 'knock their socks off', so Grandpa said.

It was a great plan. I just hoped that it would workout as flawlessly as it did in my head.

When Friday hit, a mandatory holiday for school, I woke up and felt a sense of farewell in the air. Its musk drifted throughout the boarding house and filled my room as I knew the time spent closely with Mr. Simmons and Peter had come to an end. Today was a day to say goodbye- but also a time to celebrate at all we'd done for them, with the two unknowing as to just what it was we'd done... at least unknowing as for now.

I rose from my bed and stretched my arms up high. "Well," I said aloud, "Today is the day," and with that, I swung my legs around the side of my bed and stood up to prepare myself for the day with my usual undershirt, sweater, jacket and jeans and rushed downstairs to catch some of the homemade waffles Peter was making before Oskar ate them all up.

"Good morning, Arnold," Peter greeted me as I entered the kitchen and I smiled his way.

"Morning. You excited to go home?" I blurted out not realizing it was probably a sore spot since they didn't know the whole place was furnished yet.

"I wouldn't use the word 'excited' exactly, but it will be nice to be home, yes." He said with a forced smile and I nodded my head.

"I'm sure it will all work out," I said sincerely while reaching out to touch his forearm. "I'm just sure of it."

He nodded his head while gesturing towards the kitchen table. "Food's ready. You better catch some now. Oskar's already on the third batch."

Oskar laughed from the table and I smirked before taking a seat and placing two waffles on my plate and smothering them in butter and syrup. "You know," I said while taking a bite, "We sure will miss you both once you're gone." I said to Peter as he continued with the waffle iron and he nodded his head.

"The feeling is mutual," he said before placing another stack of waffles on the table. "It will be odd not to live with so many people, that's for sure."

"I know," I replied with another mouthful, "you get used to everyone being everywhere all the time, don't you?"

He chuckled to himself as he finished up with the batter and went to wash his hands. "You certainly do."

"Think you guys will come visit?" I asked and he thought to himself for a while before nodding his head.

"I'm almost sure of it," he said while turning around and offering me a small smile and I returned to my waffles, finishing them hastily before heading into the living room where the rest of the boarders and Mr. Simmons were gathered around the television.

"What's going on?" I asked as I entered the room and Ernie turned to look at me.

"We're watching the news." he said before Mr. Simmons turned to smile at me.

"They're doing a report on the neighborhood that was caught in the fire. Our neighborhood." He said and I nodded my head moving closer to the cluster of people so I too could watch.

" _Today, those affected by the tragic fire that hit months ago here in downtown Hillwood will be moving back into their homes,"_ The reporter on the news said. _"It's a bittersweet day of quiet celebration by those devastated by the fire that investigators still have no clue as to how it started or what caused the flames that destroyed nearly half the neighborhood. However, as you can see behind me, the city has done an excellent job of repairing the damages done to the houses and people are anxious to move back into their homes, as I certainly would be too. From downtown Hillwood, this is Rebecca Frost. Back to you, Bob."_

"Well that was... very special," Mr. Simmons said from behind the couch where he stood and a voice spoke after his from the doorway.

"I think what you mean, babe, is ridiculous." Peter said while wiping his hands on a towel. "If only they knew what we're going through. Sure the houses may be repaired, but there won't be anything IN them." He shook his head in disgust. "It's ridiculous."

"But how are they supposed to know what we're going through?" Mr. Simmons countered. "I'm sure other people have insurance that will cover the expenses. Maybe we're some of the only ones."

"Even if we are," Peter said, "this whole situation is absolutely nuts. How are we going to pay for new furniture and new appliances and new... everything? Everything, Robert! Everything!" He threw his hands up in the air as Mr. Simmons rushed to his side and wrapped his arms around him.

"It will be alright," Mr. Simmons said softly as the boarders and I tried not to watch Peter's meltdown, all the while knowing they didn't have to go through the pain of thinking they had nothing if we just spilled the beans. "I promise you we will find a way out of this."

I turned to walk over to them and smiled warmly up at the pair. "I know it doesn't mean much, but I know I speak for all the boarders when I say that we will help in any way we can, for you two."

Mr. Simmons released Peter and set a hand gently on my shoulder. "That means a lot, Arnold. That's very kind of you to say that."

I reached up to rub at the back of my neck, "I know this probably isn't the best time to ask this, but what time were you guys planning on heading out?"

Mr. Simmons looked up at Peter before returning his gaze to me. "Probably within the hour. There's a lot of things to be done and ducks to get in a row if we plan on having somewhere to sleep tonight."

Grandpa spoke up from the chair he was seated in. "There's an air mattress in the hall closet you can use if you want. And some blankets too!"

I was so proud of everyone for playing along as well as they were. It was hard to see them in so much pain all at the expense of saving a secret for later, but this was a big secret and I knew they'd thank us later for keeping it all under wraps.

"Thank you, Phil," Peter said. "That helps a lot."

"I know I speak for both of us when I say that you all have been so kind and generous to us ever since the fire and we can't thank you enough for what you've done to help us in our time of need," Mr. Simmons said with an arm around Peter's waist. "It's been a rough road, but you've all helped us down it with ease and for that, we're grateful."

"Eh," Grandpa said with a swipe of his hand, "Don't sweat it, amigos." he turned to look at them sincerely. "It was our pleasure."

They nodded their heads before Mr. Simmons dropped his arms to his sides loudly and took a breath. "Well, I guess I'll go get started on the dishes. Peter, you want to go and tidy up the room?"

With that, they both retreated to their areas leaving all of us alone to inwardly sigh in relief that our cover wasn't blown. Until Mr. Simmons hollered out from the kitchen, "Does anybody know where the apron is?"

In panic, we all looked around at each other before Suzie spoke up in haste. "It's in the wash!"

Another sigh. I had to call Gerald and tell him to come over through the skylight asap.

* * *

"So YOU'RE saying, they're down there RIGHT NOW, packing up and getting ready to head over?" Gerald asked and I nodded my head while gesturing for him to quiet down.

"Yes, yes," I said just above a whisper. "But we can't let them know you're up here. That's all part of the plan."

"How are the boarders going to get there?" He asked.

I moved to sit down on my couch, "They've already said their goodbyes and headed over there one by one. It's all been a pretty slick process. They headed to their rooms and silently headed out by the fire escape."

"Dang, Arnold," Gerald said while taking a seat on my bed. "You've got this down like a well oiled machine!"

"I'm trying. The hardest part will be getting you, me, grandpa and grandma over there before they get to the house. We'll have to let grandma drive." I said with a slight shudder and Gerald raised his brow.

"Your grandma got her license back?" He asked and I smirked.

"We don't talk about it," I said and he rolled his eyes though he was visibly nervous.

"Alright then. Go say your goodbyes and let's get this show on the road. I'll wait here." He said and with that, I made my way carefully out of the room, making sure to shut the door behind me and walking down the stairs to meet Mr. Simmons and Peter at the foot of the stairs where Grandma and Grandpa were already waiting.

"There you are, Shortman," Grandpa greeted me, "I was about ready to come and get you before the Misters here depart."

"Don't worry," I said as I reached the end of the stairs and made my way to the four. "I wouldn't miss this."

"Well, Arnold, Phil, Gertie," Mr. Simmons said to each one of us. "It's been a pleasure staying here with you all." He looked over to Peter and then returned his gaze to the three of us. "You've given us so much in this time and we can't thank you enough."

"It's no problem, sonny," Grandpa said. "And know that if you ever need a place to stay again, the Sunset Arms will always have a room for you two."

Mr. Simmons' eyes welled with tears as he clasped his hands in front of his chest. "Oh Phil, that means so much to me to hear. Thank you," he reached out to envelop him in a giant hug, "Thank you so much."

"Hey, hey," he said while patting his back awkwardly, "Don't mention it."

"Well, we should get going, Robert. The car is already at the house so we'll have to take the bus." Peter said from behind him and Mr. Simmons released Grandpa and sniffled back his tears while nodding his head.

"You're right. We should get going." He reached out to grab Peter's hand and they turned around to head towards the door before turning around and looking back at us once more just as they opened the door. "Thank you again. So much."

And with that, they left the boarding house, on their way for the bus leaving the rest of us behind to follow through with the rest of our plan.

"Gerald!" I hollered from where I stood once the door closed. "Gerald! The coast is clear! Come on down!"

The door to my room opened and he emerged, hustling down the stairs to meet us at the bottom, antsy to get going.

"Alright, so we ready to go?" Gerald asked and I looked over to Grandpa and Grandma who looked at each other before Grandpa spoke up.

"Eh... we should let them get a ways away to the bus stop first before we go on peeling out of the driveway," he said and I nodded my head.

"That's good thinking, we can't let them see us leave or they might suspect something." I said and Gerald crossed his arms over his chest.

"Really? You think they'll just assume we're on the way to their house to show them around their freshly furnished place?" He said and I pointed to Gerald and nodded.

"He does have a point," I agreed and Grandma clapped her hands and scurried to the door to grab the keys hanging on the hook.

"Well, what do you say, mateys? Shall we board the ship and set her off to sea?" she asked and Gerald and I shared a scared look before nodding our heads hesitantly while Grandpa shrugged his shoulders.

"Alright then. Let's hit the the road I guess. And Pookie, try not to kill us, okay?"

All that was heard was the sound of her laughing as we left the boarding house and made our way to the packard that was waiting for us for our journey across town in hopes to beat Mr. Simmons and Peter to their old but new house.

* * *

The ride to Mr. Simmons and Peter's place was rough. I found myself clutching the seat's headrest in front of me as did Gerald nearly the entire ride and we couldn't help but stare at the clock and see that we were still behind schedule, no matter how crazy Grandma was driving.

"Are we gonna...OH!...make it?" I asked as we hit a big pothole at full speed and Grandma laughed while hitting the gas further.

"I don't know, Arnold, do you mean PHYSICALLY, or on time?" Gerald asked from beside me and I couldn't help but smirk at his comment.

"I just don't know how long the bus is gonna... HOLY CROW...take to get there." I said as we rounded a corner and just barely lifted off the ground on one side.

"Well, don't forget to take into account all the stops, Short- POOKIE ARE YOU WATCHING THE ROAD?" Grandpa hollered as she ran a stop sign and laughed all the while.

"I can see land, boys! Fire away!" She yelled as she rounded another corner to make it back on the main road only to be stopped by a red light.

"Oh crud," I muttered while slamming my hand on the headrest and leaning back on the seat. "We're never gonna make it in time!"

"This coming from YOU Mr. Positivity? Mr. Somebody has to look on the bright side? Mr. Keep your chin up it'll all work out?" Gerald said while turning to face me with narrowed eyes. "It's just a red light, man. Take a chill pill."

"I can't help it, Gerald. I'm so anxious to get THERE!" I yelped as Grandma hit on the gas full speed the second the light turned green and we all were thrown forward at the centrifugal force of the car.

"I can see our destination through the porthole!" Grandma yelled while pointing and Grandpa reached over to take the wheel, "Bear down, mateys! Prepare to set anchors aweigh!" She continued to holler and Gerald and I shared a look as she peeled down the road and made a very illegal u-turn to park down the street in some random person's driveway down the road from Mr. Simmons and Peter's house.

Feeling a little carsick, but determined to make it to the house before Peter and Mr. Simmons could, I opened the door of the car, as did everybody else, and took off running to the front of their house making it to the stoop and sitting down immediately to catch my breath, Gerald quick to follow.

"You alright, man?" He asked and I took in a deep breath before answering.

"Just a little carsick, but I'll be alright," I said and he smiled while punching me lightly on the shoulder.

"Your Grandma sure is one heck of a driver, huh?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, you could say that," I responded with a light chuckle as Grandma and Grandpa finally approached.

"Okay guys, why don't you go inside with the rest of the group and hang out till Mr. Simmons and Peter arrive," I said to Grandpa and Grandma while standing up and they nodded their heads while passing us to enter the house at last.

"Well, we made it," I finally said once they were both inside. "I can't believe it, but we made it. And alive too."

Gerald laughed before he cut himself off and pointed in the distance. "Looks like just barely, man, look!"

The bus approached us and I knew it had to be the one Peter and Mr. Simmons were on. We both stood up and faced forward, ready to greet them and pull off the last leg of the plan that had been weeks in the making.

"Here we go," I mumbled to Gerald as the bus doors opened to reveal Peter and Mr. Simmons with surprised looks on their faces.

"Gerald, A-Arnold, What, What are you doing here?" Mr. Simmons asked while shaking his head in confusion and I cleared my throat before speaking.

"We uh, we figured that you might want some support in this time before you went inside and had to deal with... everything." I said and they both approached us with sympathetic expressions.

"That's very sweet of you but I think it best if you both head home. Whatever is inside, which is nothing, we can handle it together." He said but I shook my head defiantly and continued with insistence.

"With all due respect, Mr. Simmons, Peter, we'd really like to be here. Please." I said and they exchanged a look before Mr. Simmons sighed and nodded his head.

"Alright Arnold. But only for a few minutes. There's a lot that we have to do to try and get things in order." He said and I nodded my head with a small smile creeping up on my face knowing what was about to happen.

"Completely understandable." Gerald and I parted so they could make their way to the door which was already open and we gestured to it semi-dramatically so they could enter. "You two lead the way then."

"Alright..." Mr. Simmons said, befuddled and the two made their way up the stoop and into the house with Gerald and I trailing behind.

The lights were off and everyone had been instructed to hide until the lights were turned on. It was pretty dark inside and you couldn't see much of anything. Gerald and I waited patiently for them to find the light switch and the moment Peter flicked it on, the eruption of 'Surprise!' we were waiting for finally took place.

"Surprise!" The boarders and our fellow classmates hollered and both Peter and Mr. Simmons took a step back in genuine astonishment at all the people in their newly furnished house. They paused for a moment, taking steps in the house and looking around at all the work that we'd done to furnish and decorate their house. The chandelier just above their dining room table. The lamps on either side of their couch. The television on its new stand. The fully stocked kitchen with a set of flowers in a vase on the top of the kitchen island. The framed collection of playbills just above the living room on the wall. And that was just in the main area.

They looked around in bewilderment at everything surrounding them. As they looked around in disbelief, I reached over to the kitchen island for the album that Pearl had given me and tapped Mr. Simmons on the shoulder and presented it to him. "Before you say anything, I just wanted to give you this. It's from your mother."

"My...My mother? You went to see my mother?" He asked and I nodded my head.

"She said that you might want this." I said as he began flipping through the album; a hand coming up to his mouth as he looked at the pictures inside the album. "This... this is the family photo album. All the pictures of my dad... I... I thought I'd lost everything in the fire but... but..." His eyes began to well with tears as he looked at the album before gently shutting the book and facing me. "How... how is this possible?"

"We all got together and furnished your house!" Sheena squeaked with a smile on her face from where she stood behind the recliner.

"But... but _how_?" Mr. Simmons asked again.

"First, we donated as many items as we could as a group," Phoebe explained.

"Yeah, and then we crashed the PTA meeting and asked them for help! It was totally wicked awesome! " Sid continued.

"You crashed the PTA board meeting?" Mr. Simmons asked and Peter put a hand on his shoulder.

"The one you missed," he said quietly.

"And then all of us boarders and the kids here stepped in on Wednesday to help set up the house before you guys could move in," Ernie explained further as Mr. Simmons shook his head in amazement.

"But... but why? Why would you do all of this?" He asked, and it was my turn to step in and explain.

"Because you are one of the best teachers and people we have ever met. You've done so much for all of us, Peter included, and we wanted to give back in a way that would really help you in your time of need. You deserve it." I said and his eyes began to well with tears that were soon spilling over his cheeks and falling down his face.

"I... I... I can't believe you did all of this for me... for us..." He said and Stinky decided to chime in.

"Yup! We done did all this for you!"

"But as happy as we were to do it, just ever so much, we can't take all of the credit," Lila said from where she stood in the kitchen with Grandma. "It was Arnold who came up with the idea to do all of this."

"Yeah. We never could have done all of this without his football-headed brains behind the whole thing," Helga said and I smiled at her as she smiled back at me.

Mr. Simmons turned around to face me and kneeled down to my level while placing a hand on my shoulder, still crying tearfully. "Is this true? You came up with all of this?"

I shrugged my shoulders, knowing that even though it was my idea, I couldn't have done any of it all by myself. "I guess, but I couldn't have done it without everyone's help."

Mr Simmons blinked again, and fresh tears started rolling down his face. Suddenly he scooped me up and tossed me into the air, laughing a beautiful, wonderful laugh that I didn't realize just how much I'd missed hearing. I laughed too, as I soared above my teacher's head, and fell back down into the tightest embrace I'd ever been given. "Thank you so much," he sobbed shakily, holding me to him. "I don't deserve all this.."

"But you do," I insisted, lifting my head from his shoulder to look into his eyes. "You do so much for us every single day. You help us in ways that you don't even have to. It was time for us to help you in return."

"Thank you," He said to me before turning around to face all the boarders and classmates. "Thank you one and all for everything you've done for us. I... I can't thank you enough."

"It's no problem, Mr. Simmons," Stinky said with his hands on his hips. "Even if we had to miss Gin Rummy night."

Sid elbowed him in the ribs and he let out an "OW" while the rest of us laughed.

We laughed and laughed as we showed Mr. Simmons and Peter around their new home, the two of them just repeating 'thank you' with each new thing we showed them. I couldn't believe how thankful they were for the simple thing we'd done for them- something they so deserved for being great people. Good people deserve good things, it's as simple as that. It was something I'd remember for the rest of my life.

As we finished up showing them their house and everyone departed, I gave Mr. Simmons and Peter surprisingly, one final hug and another 'you're welcome.' Just as I too was leaving, I heard a mumble from Mr. Simmons and turned around to catch sight of a kiss that I wasn't supposed to see. An embrace between the two of them that I was never privy to seeing even after Mr. Simmons had told me his secret. I watched briefly, a smile on my lips knowing that once again, they were happy, truly happy. And there was nothing in the world that could take that away from them. Not even the flames of a fire.

* * *

 _ **Thank you so much in taking part in reading this story. I know both Spec and I truly appreciate all of your feedback and appreciation for this story as it was both a challenge and a blast taking on this story and i want to thank Spec again for handing over your story idea and letting me roll with it so thank you for that.**_

 _ **Please be sure to leave a review and let us know what you thought of not only this chapter, but this story as a whole. We'd really appreciate it.**_

 _ **-Polka & Spec**_


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